ProgressOhio

All told, I received nearly five times as many calls, emails and letters from opponents of the bill as I did from its supporters." That's the sobering explanation from Rep. Joe Donnelly (D-IN) of why he voted against the hate crimes bill in the House this month. 

The bill could be up for a vote in the Senate in the coming weeks. Even if you've already sent a message to your lawmakers on this issue, your Senators need to hear from you now. 

Extremist groups have made stopping the Matthew Shepard Act into the centerpiece of their agenda, and despite the desperation of their lies our opponents' messages keep coming. And lawmakers on Capitol Hill listen. 

The good news is, Sen. Brown has signed on as a cosponsor of this bill. However, Sen. Voinovich has NOT declared support for the bill. With the opposition slamming them with emails and calls, BOTH need to hear from you today. Send a message to Sen. Voinovich to urge support for the Matthew Shepard Act.

Then—and this is just as important!— thank Sen. Brown for cosponsoring this legislation. The White House released a statement saying that President Bush's advisors recommend he veto the bill. However, we know that a strong Senate vote in support of the Matthew Shepard Act will be a critical factor in the president's final decision and the ultimate fate of the law.   

If we want the Matthew Shepard Act to become law, we need it to win big in the Senate, so that Congress sends a strong message to President Bush that he needs to sign the bill. 

But anti-gay groups' political attacks will be even more intense as the Senate vote nears. 

Here are some of their absurd tactics leading up to the House vote: Manufacturing a blatantly fake House transcript.Promoting the work of a known racist filmmaker (whose other titles include "Keep America White").Claiming this law would make it a crime to "read the Bible a certain way" or have anti-gay thoughts.Callously invoking the Virginia Tech massacre.Extremist groups are trying to drum up so much opposition to make Senators afraid to vote for this bill. 

But 68% of Americans support this bill's measures, so let's make certain they know that voting against this bill will anger even more of their constituents. 

People like you and I need to cut through the noise and tell the Senate to vote for the Matthew Shepard Act. Let's turn the tide, starting right now.