Would Hate Crimes Law Limit Free Speech?

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Permalink Reply by Jules Bush on May 5, 2009 at 6:31pm

If you are NOT a minority (i.e. white, male, Caucasian, Anglo-Saxon, etc,) I understand how you cannot empathize with having Hate Crimes Laws; however, if you ARE a minority, and have been a victim of hate personally and professionally, than perhaps you would have different views on embracing this type of legislature.

Hate on any level is WRONG and Perez Hilton is wrong to viciously attack Ms. California; however, how is his view any different than those of other pundits on the opposite end who are anti-gay, anti-gay marriage, etc.

And, after all Perez Hilton is a self-made highly successful entertainment blogger - he doesn't work for any major publishing company, communications company or news affiliate. If you have ever read his blog you wouldn't take his behavior very seriously, but realize he is utilizing this as a huge opportunity to increase his readership, website traffic, and generally provide entertainment. Many of his readers - gay and heterosexual - have condemned him for attacking Miss California.

The Hate Crimes Legislation has been proposed for OVER 10 years and was the result of the brutal hate crime of Matthew Shepard who was gay.

The bottom line is hate comes in all shapes, sizes and forms - physical, mental, emotional, financial, etc.

And until you've experienced it - you won't understand it.

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Permalink Reply by Jack Shepler on May 5, 2009 at 6:33pm

I agree with you :).

Although... let's remember that what Perez Hilton says is merely speech - protected speech at that. He hasn't done any violent crimes that I know of.

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Permalink Reply by Joe Shoemaker on May 5, 2009 at 8:02pm

Precisely.

Great points, Jules.

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Permalink Reply by Emily Abel on May 5, 2009 at 7:21pm

What is the real question here? Hate crimes are hate crimes and no one should be subject to them, no matter the race, religion, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, disability or anything else we come up with. Hate is hate. In my opinion, anyone who calls himself a Christian should not be spreading "hate" of any kind. And in my opinion those that preach against anyone else should not be calling him or herself a Christian.

I agree with Michael's comments. AMEN!

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Permalink Reply by Joe Shoemaker on May 5, 2009 at 7:44pm

Pat:

What is your point in taking the President's quote about America not being a Christian nation out of context? Are you purposefully fanning the religious flames?

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Permalink Reply by Pat Coyle on May 6, 2009 at 9:15am

As always, just trying to get conversation going.

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Permalink Reply by Will Doss on May 5, 2009 at 10:04pm

First of all, we just have WAY too many laws. Hate crime laws, laws about what you can and can't do while you drive, etc. Where will it end? We do NOT need them. If you murder, batter, assault, or otherwise commit a violent act against someone, there are laws under which you will be prosecuted. It SHOULD NOT matter WHY you attack someone, you should be punished for the crime. Didn't like someone's sexual orientation? Wanted to take their shoes? Thought they looked at you funny? It shouldn't matter, you should be punished.

Same with driving. Want to make it illegal for kids 16-18 to use cel phones while driving? What happens if, after the law has been in effect, we realize the majority of their accidents are now cause by eating while driving? Do we pass another law making it illegal to eat while driving? Then illegal to change the radio?

Leave us alone, enforce the laws we have, and quit trying to legislate morality on both sides of the aisle.

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Permalink Reply by Joe Shoemaker on May 5, 2009 at 10:20pm

Such sweet irony. An attorney harping about too many laws.

That made my day!

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Permalink Reply by Joe Weingarten on May 5, 2009 at 10:13pm

I lost most of my family to a hate crime in the 1940's until a few months ago I never even knew what happened to my grandparents. They were taken to Riga in a cattle car, marched to the woods outside of town and machine gunned down into an open pit. My grandfather had 9 brothers, only one survived. One of my Aunts lived under the floor of a home for two years.

Freedom of speech is just that, hate to cause injury is a crime.

About "America is not a Christian nation," that is correct. It is a nation of all religions not just one. It is a nation of freedom of religion. As soon as it becomes a nation of one religion it no longer is America.

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Anderson-Henry on May 6, 2009 at 2:36pm

Thank you for sharing that, Joe.

And I'm with you 100% on your last paragraph.

As an aside. it strikes me as ironic that those who usually protest the loudest against hate crime legislation are the last people who, according to their religion, shouldn't have to worry about it affecting them in the first place.

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Permalink Reply by Terence "Tery" Snoeberger on May 5, 2009 at 10:30pm

I always like to point out the first remark, if you look at our founding fathers most were of the Deist faith. Even Judo-Christian is Jewish/Christian. It seems the focus to me and being a homosexual "Gay" man is that there are a lot of conservative people that have an under current of anything that might be misconstrued as moving the "Gay Agenda" further. It seems that people are trying to balance human life or taking away freedom of speech. It seems this should be a no-brainer.

As far as Perez Hilton, there are a lot of GLBT that feel he is an extreme radical gay man like Rush Limbaugh is an extreme radical conservative. I think using Perez Hilton is a generalization of the GLBT views. Heading down a dangerous path is nothing more then what our founding fathers did with the Declaration of Independence. A dangerous path, wow that says it all for a hate crimes bill being needed. "We have to be careful taught, we have to be taught to hate and fear before we are six, seven or eight to have it drummed in our dear little ears, we have to be carefully taught" If you want to understand why hate crime bills are needed look up the listing of Southern Poverty Groups. Even in this day and age there is a lot of hate and doesn't it say that "everyone" should be protected under the law? It seems the protection under the law doesn't always cover select minority groups. There are still small police forces that still don't have diversity training, don't want women on their forces. Laws make these small towns take action that they otherwise wouldn't apply -what should be common sense and "protection for all".

Who do you think is really the push of diversity for all? It's not the GLBT, it is the Fortune 500 companies.

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Permalink Reply by Darrell G. Walton on May 5, 2009 at 11:47pm

All this 'Hate Crimes Law's" true agenda is to the catalyst to communism. Demoralize a nation with laws against the will of it's own people. Prosecute and imprison those who defy the governments statutes for expressing their previous rights whether purposely or by accident. (intimidation) (Attack the church and make it an example as to also rob all citizens the freedom of assembling because of the government's perceived threat of that of those with a different ideological belief or faith other than their own.)
Communism is the strong arm protector and preservationist of the socialism we see rampantly over taking our economy.
Can you say Dictator Obama?
The solution is revolution as to have the guts of our forefathers and take our country back!!!

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