Was the Nashville Shooting a 'Hate Crime'?

The Nashville shooter was a former student at the Covenant School who resented being sent there by her parents. This much is public information.

What we don’t know is contained in what Nashville Police Chief John Drake refers to as a “manifesto” — a document that will no doubt clear up a lot of questions surrounding the shooting. We already know the “who.” It’s the “why” that eludes us and from what we know, the reason for Audrey Hale’s shooting spree is contained in that document.

But we’re not going to be able to read the document. And it’s an open question as to whether the document will ever be released to the general public.

“We need to know what was going through this person’s head, and the manifesto should be made public,” Tennessee Republican Rep. Tim Burchett told Fox News Digital in a Monday statement.

But activists have their own ideas.

“It should not be published,” Jordan Budd, the executive director of Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere (COLAGE), told Newsweek. “The focus should be on how this was able to happen in the first place. There should not be such easy access to deadly weaponry.”

Pay no attention to that trans person behind the curtain. It’s the guns that made Hale start shooting.

That pretty much sums up the reasoning of trans activists and their supporters.

Charles Moran (no relation), the national president of Log Cabin Republicans, a GOP organization that advocates for LGBTQ causes, told Newsweek that there would be “serious consequences” from releasing the manifesto.

“While it would certainly give insight into the motivations of this deeply troubled individual that could help shed light into root causes, we know from tragedies like this that additional glorification of the shooter could inspire others to take similar violent acts for attention,” Moran said.

That’s been the argument made by well-meaning activists since Columbine. Even if it’s true, the media would never buy into it.

On Tuesday, a police spokesman told the Daily Caller that authorities had no intention of releasing the document anytime soon, saying, “We will not be releasing the manifesto during an open investigation.”

If the manifesto mentioned Trump, Republicans, or conservatives, would the cops be so hesitant to release it?

But since the attack happened at a Christian school, and the transgendered shooter “targeted” the school, according to Chief Drake, this may be an instance of authorities wanting to keep a lid on a volatile situation.

Instead, what they’re doing is turning up the heat in the pressure cooker. There are only political reasons not to release the manifesto — namely, that it makes trans people look bad. Meanwhile, the American people have a right to know if a hate crime has been committed.

“What police have told us in Nashville is that this was targeted at this Christian school, the Christian students, the Christian employees and that they believe it was definitely premeditated and there was a deliberate attempt to target the school,” Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley told Fox News in a sit–down interview. “We need to be clear that when you target people of faith, that is a hate crime.”

If hate crime rhetoric is “dangerous” when directed at a minority, then the hateful rhetoric directed at the Christian community is equally dangerous and needs to be considered as a motivating factor in the shooting.

“We’ve seen a lot of language directed at the Christian community with regard to particularly trans issues, calling them hateful,” Hawley told Fox News. “That kind of rhetoric is dangerous, and we’re seeing its effects right now.”

“That’s part of the investigation and discussion we need to have,” said the Missouri Republican.

We should be clear about what happened in Nashville. Police say the shooting was “targeted.” That makes it a federal hate crime – against Christian children and teachers. Targeting victims on the basis of religious affiliation is a hate crime. It should be investigated as such

— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) March 28, 2023