Recently, Wichita State students have had the opportunity to hear and interact with influential leaders from the modern world, and students had the chance Wednesday afternoon to hear from a top political leader.

U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom visited campus early Wednesday afternoon. Grissom, District of Kansas, was nominated by President Barack Obama in April 2010 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate that August.

In honor of the five-year anniversary of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, signed by Obama, Grissom visited WSU students and faculty to talk about the importance of tolerance and community action in their daily lives.

Sixteen years ago, University of Wyoming student Matthew ‘Matt’ Shepard was tortured and murdered near Laramie, Wyo., after accepting a ride home from Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson from a local bar.

McKinney and Henderson severely beat Shepard with weapons and left him tied to a fencepost in the name of Shepard’s sexual orientation, which Shepard identified as gay.

A few months prior, James Byrd, Jr. — an African-American from Texas — was murdered by three men, Shawn Berry, Lawrence Russell Brewer and John King, because of the color of Byrd’s skin.

Because of these two crimes, Obama signed into law the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act in 2009, which expanded the 1969 U.S. federal hate-crime law to include crimes centered around sexual orientation, gender, identity or disability. Under the 1969 act, violent conduct was only eligible for prosecution if it was committed while the victim was taking part in a federally-protected activity, such as attending school or voting.

“Hate still exists in our communities,” Grissom said to attendees Wednesday afternoon. “Hate still exists in our state.”

After beginning the discussion with background information about the crimes prevention act, Grissom spent time talking about the requirement of community awareness and action when it comes to social injustice.

Even though the focus of the act is on the Shepard and Byrd cases, Grissom stressed to students that hate is still alive in their own backyard.

In 2010, Democratic House of Representatives candidate Dan Manning, a graduate of West Point and eight-year U.S. Army veteran was the target of hate when death threats were posted to his home with references to his sexual orientation.

Grissom stressed to WSU students the necessity of tolerance and acceptance in their own communities.

“Opponents have always argued against new protection for gays and lesbians that sexual orientation and gender identity were matters of moral behavior and choice, and they should not be protected by government,” Grissom said.

“Anytime someone tells me ‘it is a choice,’ my question back to them is: ‘can you tell me the day you made the choice?’ Because, I’ll tell you, if [there was a] day I decided to be a heterosexual or homosexual, that would be a gold-star day. Its not a choice — its who we are.”

Grissom concluded the speech by fielding questions from audience members and tips on preventing bigotry, violence and hate in their own lives. He spoke about the nature of mutual respect between humans, asking for acceptance between individuals of different genders, sexual orientations and religious backgrounds.

“I was very disappointed when I saw, a few months ago, a Kansas political leader make a statement that, quote: ‘Offending Muslims is the duty of any civilized person, especially anyone with a .45,’” Grissom said. “That kind of mindless bigotry should not find any place in our minds or our hearts.”

Political education and awareness, Grissom said, is a way college students can prevent bigotry on campus.

“The one thing I would like of college students is to become more politically active — just to engage the different topics out there,” Grissom said after the discussion. “Look at the candidates positions, look at endorsements. The best line in the Constitution is not ‘We the People,’ it is ‘to form a more perfect union.’ It is up to every generation to make [the United States] more perfect than the last.”