Primer: Hate Speech Legislation

This Monday, Political Union will be debating whether the US should adopt anti-hate speech legislation. Not sure where you stand? Check out these sources to get some background info before tonight!

First, check out these articles to get a sense of where US law currently stands:

  • This article from the American Library Association gives a quick overview of where the US stands on hate speech (protected by the 1st Amendment) versus hate crimes. (Bonus! It also explains how this issue pertains specifically to American libraries, if you’re into that!)

  • Notably, referenced in the above article is the Snyder v. Phelps Supreme Court case, which provides an example of a time the US has protected hate speech as free speech due to the speech being under “matters of public concern” rather than “matters of purely private significance.” 

  • Another relevant Supreme Court case is Brandenburg v. Ohio, which gives another example of the First Amendment protecting speech advocating illegal conduct as long as the speech is not likely to incite “imminent lawless action.”

Great, now you’re all caught up! Now, what are people saying about the issue? 

For some perspectives in favor of anti-hate speech legislation:

  • This op-ed from the Washington Post argues that hate speech, while it does not inspire lawless action, still increases intolerance and enables discrimination, making it worthy of restriction. This op-ed from NBC makes a similar argument, using the rise of neo-Nazism in the US as an example.  

  • This op-ed from NPR’s Code Switch advocates for anti-hate speech legislation by arguing that hate speech does not contribute to the “marketplace of ideas” like other free speech since we cannot make objective choices about hateful language. (This one’s a bit harder to summarize than the rest, but it’s a super interesting read and I recommend checking it out.)

And for some perspectives against it:

  • This op-ed in USA Today appeals to Americans’ right to freedom of speech under the 1st Amendment, arguing that limiting free speech results in everyday citizens being afraid to speak their mind while doing little to curb the actions of “actual” fascists who wish to cause harm.

  • This law review from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression outlines how difficult it can be to define exactly what counts as hate speech, making anti-hate speech legislation nearly impossible to create.

Still haven’t made up your mind? No worries! We want to see you anyway! Come to Scott Hall 212 on Monday at 7:00 to share your thoughts and hear from others. 


"hate" by the real duluoz is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

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