by Paul McMasters

About the author: Paul McMasters is the First Amendment ombudsman for the Freedom Forum, an advocacy organization dedicated to free press and free speech.

More than one year has passed, and we have yet to shake the image of Matthew Shepard pistol-whipped and strung up to die on a Wyoming rail fence because he was gay [the murder occurred on October 7, 1998]. We still shudder over the horror of James Byrd chained to a pickup truck and dragged to his death along a Texas country road because he was black. We cringe when reminded of the racist rampage of Benjamin Smith that left two people dead and nine others wounded.

America, we like to feel, has room for everyone. It is a place of tolerance, equality, and justice. Hate is a...