There is officially no federal hate crime protection for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people in the United States. However, LGBT people are often times met with violence and hate from society at large. Sean Kennedy, a twenty year old from Greenville, South Carolina, learned this truth the hard way. Mr. Kennedy was punched in the face by an eighteen-year-old boy who was heard yelling homophobic slurs before he, ultimately, killed Mr. Kennedy. The death of Sean Kennedy has sparked a political interest in getting South Carolina to add violence against the LGBT community as a hate crime. Hate crime legislation would allow the judicial system to punish criminals who attacked LGBT people more harshly. Hate crime legislation would also grant victims, like Sean Kennedy, and their families proper justice