Eldargal: what you just said, while in quotes, made my brain cry back to its mummy, damn you. Why do you hate my brain so -giggles-
Grenadier: The worst part is is hate crime laws arent supposed to work like that. You have to prove that the reason they committed the crime was due to discrimination and hate and not just because they happen to be gay/black/etc. It was well meaning, because when they first started coming out, people who commited crimes against those minorities often got off because they weren't fully protected, and they would get minimal sentences. I am sorry, regardless of hate crime or not, if you assault someone, or have the intention to kill them, your life should be ruined by the consequences as you had fully intended to ruin the person's life you were committing the crime against.
Now in the case of anti-discrimination law, while it is technically discriminatory because it spells out specific things that are protected, it is very necessary (I know you didn't talk about this, just bringing it up). Because when it comes down to legality, especially in work at will states (most states) if you aren't specifically protected, then you get abused and have no hope of doing anything about it.
Really though, overall, I think the only way to get past these issues is not by litigation, but by going the long road. IE, changing societie's viewpoint on certain issues, on domestic abuse, on LGBT people, and this is slowly happening and I think will be the most successful. An example that I like a lot is the "men's strength isn't to hurt" campaign where men are saying "my strength is not to hurt people, or abuse people." While it is technically a bit patronizing, who cares, it gets the point across in a positive way that I think will have a greater impact.