I don't necessarily agree with hate crime legislation... just stating why I "think" countries have them.
I do however, believe that hate crimes *exist* and that they are different from other crimes, for the reason I stated above. I think these crimes are on par with terrorism. If I murder my husband because we argued, no other person or group needs to fear me or anticipate any further act of violence from me. However, if I kill someone in the name of anti-semitism, or because I hate white men, many people are given the message that they need to fear me. These are totally different kinds of crime.
I grew up with stories of Marc Lepine, who killed 14 female students in a classroom after letting the men go, because he hated women, obviously, and blamed *all* of them for his problems. I think if you find yourself in a "vulnerable" group, you have more of sensitivity to that sort of crime.