It’s Time to Limit Restrict Hate Speech Essay - 901 Words

It’s Time to Limit Restrict Hate Speech Free speech is the backbone that holds democracy together. Without a free speech, ideas would not be challenged, governments would not be kept in check, and citizens would not be free. John Stuart Mill said once that, â€Å"If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person then he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.†( Roleff, 21). The right to free speech is essential to â€Å"egalitarian democracy,†(Tsesis) however, this right is not absolute and must be limited in certain situations. Hate speech is one form of expression that should be limited in some†¦show more content†¦This speech grew to action, which led Nazi leaders to implement the â€Å"Final Solution,† and the massacre of six million Jews. But what about hate crimes today in the United States, how are hate-based murders different from a murder of a random individual. The answer to that question is in the brutality of the crime. Hate crimes are, for the most part, inherently more brutal because of deeply rooted ideals between two opposing groups. This brutality has led many, including former president Bill Clinton to call for legislation against hate crimes (Hellwege). Yet another important question to ask is, what exactly defines a hate crime? Is what Dr. Laura Schlessinger guilty of a hate crime when she says that individuals are â€Å"entitled to respect and kindness as fellow human beings,† when she publicly denounces homosexuality? (Leo). A logical person wouldn’t think so. However, Dr. Schlessinger is coming under heavy scrutiny form gay rights groups protesting the good Doctors radio show and calling for her silence, or, at a minimum, an apology on the subject. Denouncing homosexuality pacifically should in no way be compared to the hostile descent of neo-nazi hate groups. So should both hostile and pacifist discent be limited on the same scale? Pacifist descent should not be limited at all in any case, to do so would be a total suppression of free speech and hostile dissent should only be limited in certain extreme cases. This must be doneShow MoreRelatedAre We Really Free to Speak and Express Ourselves1588 Words   |à ‚  7 Pagesagainst an amendment that was set forth to protect the people and limit government control in the first place. â€Å"Freedom of speech in the United States is protected by the First amendment to the United States Constitution and by many state constitutions and state and federal laws. Criticism of the government and advocacy of unpopular ideas that people may find distasteful or against public policy, such as racism, sexism, and other hate speech are almost always permitted. There are exceptions to these generalRead MoreCensorship Is Bad For The Modern World876 Words   |  4 Pagesgovernment, ethnic communities and media outlets. Censorship originates back in ancient times in many different countries such as Rome and China. Censorship was mainly used for political, social and religious purposes. For example, Christians used censorship to defend against non-Christian rulers threats. There are various reasons as to why censorship is used. They include: security purposes, prevent hate speech, to protect vulnerable communities and also to counter unethical religious and politicalRead More Free Speech Essay2198 Words   |  9 Pagespeople’s opinions were heard. What our Founding Fathers could not foresee is that in our 21st century, The Freedom of Speech not only gives a person such a massive power, but also an opinion even if it is immoral and goes against citizens’ values. 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A short overview of these follows. 1.The First Amendment Given how short the First Amendment is, it has caused a surprising amount of controversy and an untold number of new laws and regulations. The text simply states â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceablyRead More Offensive Speech Should be Allowed Essay2753 Words   |  12 PagesAmericans treasure the right to freedom of speech above all others. Yet, as we stand here in the birth of a new millennium, this right has become endangered. College campuses across the nation are embroiled in a heated debate over what, exactly, constitutes free speech. At the heart of the debate is the issue of hate speech, or speech that offends, threatens, or insults a person because of some trait such as gender or race (McMasters). Incidents of hate speech include an international student shoutingRead More Protecting Our Children from the In ternet Essay3043 Words   |  13 Pagesessentially learning how to use a computer. As my son gets older and begins to use the computer more and more, I would like to let him have access to the Internet but not everything that comes along with it. I know that this will not be for some time, but that gives me the opportunity to learn how to protect him from things that are not appropriate for him. For example, there is a website called Rotten.com that shows pictures of people who have been shot or stabbed. It even has the picture showing