President Obama issued the following statement last night regarding hate crimes legislation which goes before the Congress today.

“This week, the House of Representatives is expected to consider H.R. 1913, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2009. I urge members on both sides of the aisle to act on this important civil rights issue by passing this legislation to protect all of our citizens from violent acts of intolerance – legislation that will enhance civil rights protections, while also protecting our freedom of speech and association. I also urge the Senate to work with my Administration to finalize this bill and to take swift action.”

It’s not too late to to contact your congressman and urge passage of HR 1913.

Watch the proceedings live on C-Span today.

On Twitter follow the #fighthatenow hashtag.