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The killing of a gay couple in Happy Valley, the torching of three synagogues in Sacramento and the fire-bombing of a women's health clinic represent an assault on the democratic ideals of freedom and equality, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force said today.

According to published reports, longtime partners Winfield Mowder and Gary Matson were found shot to death in their Happy Valley home, about 180 miles north of San Francisco. Two suspects have been arrested on stolen property charges in connection with the killings. Published reports today indicate that the two brothers also are under investigation for their possible roles in the attacks on the synagogues and women's health clinic.

"A common thread runs through each of these incidents and that common thread is hate," said NGLTF Executive Director Kerry Lobel. "The cost of hate crimes to our communities and to our sense of self worth is inestimable. A crime against one of us is a crime against all of us. Likewise, a crime against one community is a crime against every community."

The rash of threats, intimidation and violence in California comes on the eve of an expected vote in the U.S. Senate over the proposed Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The measure would expand the existing hate crimes statute to cover disability status, gender and sexual orientation and would make it easier for federal authorities to prosecute crimes of violence.

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The mission of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is to build the political power of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community from the ground up. We do this by training activists, organizing broad-based campaigns to defeat anti-LGBT referenda and advance pro-LGBT legislation, and by building the organizational capacity of our movement. Our Policy Institute, the movementís premier think tank, provides research and policy analysis to support the struggle for complete equality and to counter right-wing lies. As part of a broader social justice movement, we work to create a nation that respects the diversity of human expression and identity and creates opportunity for all. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., we also have offices in New York City, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis and Cambridge.