Free Speech or Racial Hatred?

There is a difference between expressing an opinion and attacking a person or a group of people. The latter is rightly unlawful in europe.

If I didn't like black people I have every right to express my feelin in ways like "I don't like black people", "I think black people are stupid ****s." The key word here is "I don't". I'm expressing an opinion, thus my freedom of speech.
If I were to say "Black people are stupid ****s" I wouldn't express an opinion, but I would attack every black person on the world. That is unlawful and that is what is legally regulated in europe.

I'm liberal, but first and foremost I'm a democrate in the word's true sence. I belive in democracy what ever happens. I will never tolerate nazi bastards that try to take the power. But if they were to win an election I wouldn't say ****. I would back up and get out of the country.
Because of this I think that some laws against racial hatred could be stronger than they are today because it hasn't got anything to do with freedom of speech.

In a democracy one can't tolerate un-democratic methods.

Remember Voltaire kids,
"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

Cheers,

:brickwall
Bottom line is this (as sad as it may be) There will always be racism, there will always be prejudices against this group or that group, this sex or that sex...etc, etc, etc... It's not a question of legal or illegal it's a question of human nature. No law imposed by any government will ever be able to control human nature.
Sensoring personal communications for racism is ludicrous at best. If anything, such an action would generate more contempt towards whichever group the person has decided not to like. If you take someone who makes an off hand, insensitive comment and make a big deal out of it, you are validating that statement. (saying hey....you must be right, but don't tell anyone else)
Not only would such censorship be adding to the problem, it would be nearly impossible to draw the lines of what is racist and what is not...take, for example...two African American teens saying to each other "wusup nigga" they aren't being racist, aren't trying to insult or offend. They consider it acceptable between them as friends. The exact same statement taken in a different context though would be an extremely rude and racist comment. My point is that if you don't know the source, target, and setting of a statement...then it is impossible in many cases to determine if a statement was meant as a racial slur.
I wish that people would forget about racism completely....honestly, if you hadn't already been given definitions of white, black, indian, etc...would it even cross your mind to label them, or (without the definitions that have already been attached) whould race simply be another genetic trait like hair color or height?

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Originally posted here by Faqt
:brickwall
Bottom line is this (as sad as it may be) There will always be racism, there will always be prejudices against this group or that group, this sex or that sex...etc, etc, etc... It's not a question of legal or illegal it's a question of human nature. No law imposed by any government will ever be able to control human nature.
Sensoring personal communications for racism is ludicrous at best. If anything, such an action would generate more contempt towards whichever group the person has decided not to like. If you take someone who makes an off hand, insensitive comment and make a big deal out of it, you are validating that statement. (saying hey....you must be right, but don't tell anyone else)
Not only would such censorship be adding to the problem, it would be nearly impossible to draw the lines of what is racist and what is not...take, for example...two African American teens saying to each other "wusup nigga" they aren't being racist, aren't trying to insult or offend. They consider it acceptable between them as friends. The exact same statement taken in a different context though would be an extremely rude and racist comment. My point is that if you don't know the source, target, and setting of a statement...then it is impossible in many cases to determine if a statement was meant as a racial slur.
I wish that people would forget about racism completely....honestly, if you hadn't already been given definitions of white, black, indian, etc...would it even cross your mind to label them, or (without the definitions that have already been attached) whould race simply be another genetic trait like hair color or height?

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There will not always be racism. Not to totally disagree , cause I'm the agreeable type.(yeah, right) But, there will come a time when the populous of the world is not definable by color. In other words integration will take on a literal meaning, you won't be able to tell if someone is black or white or yellow or red.

Hopefully sooner than later.

Personally,
I do not have a problem with racism, sexism, etc. BECAUSE it is people's opinions that they have the rite to uphold. To me it is a crime of the greatest magnitude to NOT speak out your opinion. To do so would be to fall under power of the government. That is the ultimate form of censorship. There should ALWAYS be a place to speak freely without fear of retaliation or imprisonment.

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There will not always be racism. Not to totally disagree , cause I'm the agreeable type.(yeah, right) But, there will come a time when the populous of the world is not definable by color. In other words integration will take on a literal meaning, you won't be able to tell if someone is black or white or yellow or red.

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Okay, I'll give you that one, eventually there may come a day when race is not an issue...my point is that there will be something that IS an issue. Maybe it'll be a prejudice against fat people, short people, people with dimples....who knows what or why, it is simply human nature to find something that will categorize people, and then pick at it, judge it, and ultimately (in their minds) define it as wrong, ugly, or sick....then loudly share their conclusions with those that do and don't agree with them.

This seems to me to be yet another overeaction on the part of government to a real threat to the population of this world...

Censoring Email and Jailing racists is not going to solve this issue....only education and time will. If these people get violent (verbally or physically) than the Gov't needs to step in, but not before...

This is a terrible answer, but its better than the others (with all respect to Winston!)

whenever a freedom, or anything for that matter becomes forbidden, it only makes people want it more. if they start censoring and charging people for their email, all it will do is make these typs of people do it more. i hate racism, but i hate censorship as well. when i was young, i used to have a shaved head, but so many people took it as a sign of something else. people would always ask me "are you a skinhead, or, are you a racist." my answer was always the same. i am only racist against racist people. like jcmcb said, only education and time will be able to "cure" racism. it is a disease that has plagued humanity since the begginng of time. there has always been prejudices in the past. our entire hisotry is based upon hatreds of nationality, skin color, religious believes, gender, financial status, and pretty much anything else that can be used to segregate people from other people. but no matter what, we are all humans. we are all individuals. we are all different and unique. this should be appreciated and respected. not hated.
people try to use technology to spread hatred, but it can also be used to spread awareness. to open the closed minds of these types of people.

This isn't going to be technical, but F-that. While your at it why don't you start burning books. All I am trying to say is that people have a right to thier opinion. And so what if you don't agree with it.

NH liscense plate "LIVE FREE OR DIE" I like the sound of it.

Well I totally agree with freedom of speach and I hate censorship. I hate racism, sexism and other forms of bigotry ,but you have to learn to deal with it as it will always be present (at least in our lifetimes). Opinions should not be censored. I have dealt with **** in the past and still deal with it. I used to get beat up all time because I was white in the hood. I still get **** for it but I hope to move soon. As was posted earlier if you censor it people will want to do it even more. The internet should not be censored as it is a global community. Censorship is good in theory but it angers alot of people in practice. You cannot stop people from hearing these kinds of things. To sum it all up I think that it's crossing the line.

If I had to draw a line between what is appropriate and what is not, I would fall back onto something my mother drilled into my head as a child. She always said, "You can think whatever you want. You can mutter whatever you darn well please under your breath. That's your right. But the minute it comes out of your mouth loud enough for anyone else to hear, or the minute you act on it, yer gittin a whoopin." It's the difference between an opinion and an action.

John Doe has the right to believe that African-Americans are lazy, the Jewish people are communists and the government is out to get the white man. However the minute he refuses to hire someone because of it, commits a crime based on it, or advocates/encourages active discrimination against them, then, in my opinion, it's wrong.

If I send an email to a friend, dicussing a belief that Christianity is a cult, that's my belief and my right to do so. However if I send a mass email, particuarly to people who have not chosen to recieve it or argueably even those who have, advocating that in some form Christians be discriminated against, then it crosses the line.

I quite firmly believe that there will indeed be a day that noone will be judge on color, lifestyles, sex, religion, etc. That day will also coincide with the extinction of the human race, -because- we could not quit fighting over color, lifestyles, sex, and religion.

Hopefully when that day comes I will already be long dead and buried, though sometimes I wonder.

-Keisha