Should it be a crime to express racist beliefs?

[RetiredGySgt]

My thoughts are that racism has been pretty much soundly rejected by society, except for an uneducated fringe. Slavery has been abolished, and both the Republican and Democratic Party have people of various colors serving under them. And we all know that you can't be a racist and be a Christian. Jesus was a Jew and preached a message of love for all of humanity.

So, if we just made it a crime to express racist beliefs, we might be able to render the last vestiges of racism in our society obsolete. Seems like a win-win to me, and no one would miss the racists.

Here are some examples of what we could make illegal:

*Expressing hatred or violence toward people based on their race or skin color

*Expressing conspiracy theories about people of a certain racial group (e.x. Jews controlling the media)

*Expressing the belief that one race is superior or inferior to another.

so you support banning IM2 and superbadbrotha from the board for their racist views post daily here? Or just white people should be effected?

 

[Papageorgio]

Troubling to see so many would throw our rights away so they themselves could FEEL safer.

I am glad the 1st Amendment is strong.

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Troubling to see so many would throw our rights away so they themselves could FEEL safer.

I am glad the 1st Amendment is strong.

Not so strong Europe and Canada have thrown out Freedom of Speech already.

 

[M14 Shooter]

So, if we just made it a crime to express racist beliefs, ...

You'll have to amend the constitution, because you have every right to express your hatred for those you do not like, regardless of your motivation.
Good luck.

 

[Orangecat]

Should it be a crime to continually post stupid questions?

 

[Orangecat]

Racism is incompatible with a free society.

How so?
In your “free society”, people are not free to believe some races are superior to others?

 

[Papageorgio]

Not so strong Europe and Canada have thrown out Freedom of Speech already.

And they cannot here, they don’t have a 1st amendment, we do and we need to all be diligent in making sure it stays strong.

 

[M14 Shooter]

Racism is incompatible with a free society.

A society is not free if it does not protect the expression of offensive / unpopular opinions.

Basically, we can treat racists the same way that Jews were treated in Nazi Germany,

Ah. You want the state to round up and murder people you do not like.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

No, it should not be a crime, unless the words are used specifically to incite violence or another crime. The First Amendment is our most important right, and it opens the door for the rights of the Amendments that follow.

We have to know what other people are thinking. We have to know who agrees with them. We have to allow ideas and opinions to flow with minimal restriction. Even ugly ideas like racism. It's how we became the leader of the Free World and most prosperous country on the planet.

The American Left still refuses to see this, but it's the Political Correctness that it weaponized to control speech that has played a large role in the rise of Trumpism. The Left attacked freedom of expression and instituted punitive rules and punishments for those who "offended" others. That created a rising resentment over the years that finally exploded in 2016.

And now we're seeing freedom of the press and expression being punished and threatened from the OTHER side.

That's what happens when people go too far, moving from proper advocacy to aggressive enforcement.

It's amazing that all of America wasn't driven into Trump's arms by the left! I wonder what magical traits of immunity everyone else has? And why every first world country -- most more stringent -- hasn't elected a rapist career criminal as their leader.

 

[Mac1958]

It's amazing that all of America wasn't driven into Trump's arms by the left! I wonder what magical traits of immunity everyone else has? And why every first world country -- most more stringent -- hasn't elected a rapist career criminal as their leader.

There is a clear growth of nationalist populism in many countries. At the very foundation of virtually every instance is the feeling that their country's culture is being lost to foreign immigration, a lack of assimilation, avoidance of accountability for negative behaviors and attacks on any criticism they give.

Is there some over-reaction in this? Sure. Do some rotten characters end up getting too much influence? Definitely. Do these groups often nurture paranoia and rage and manipulation? Yep. But it's there and it's not getting smaller.

So I guess the question is what the goal is. If the Left's goal is to increase animosity and resentment, I think they're nailing it. If the goal is something else, it's definitely not very clear.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

There is a clear growth of nationalist populism in many countries.

Yet no fat rapist career criminal morons leading them. Brazil is trying to put their version in jail for being the traitor criminal he is. Have you seen their restrictions on free speech?

So the first finger gets pointed at the American right.

 

[Mac1958]

Yet no fat rapist career criminal morons leading them. Brazil is trying to put their version in jail for being the traitor criminal he is. Have you seen their restrictions on free speech?

So the first finger gets pointed at the American right.

That's just a function of a culture and society in clear decay.

I think both ends of the spectrum have had a significant role in that.

 

[Carl in Michigan]

My thoughts are that racism has been pretty much soundly rejected by society, except for an uneducated fringe. Slavery has been abolished, and both the Republican and Democratic Party have people of various colors serving under them. And we all know that you can't be a racist and be a Christian. Jesus was a Jew and preached a message of love for all of humanity.

So, if we just made it a crime to express racist beliefs, we might be able to render the last vestiges of racism in our society obsolete. Seems like a win-win to me, and no one would miss the racists.

Here are some examples of what we could make illegal:

*Expressing hatred or violence toward people based on their race or skin color

*Expressing conspiracy theories about people of a certain racial group (e.x. Jews controlling the media)

*Expressing the belief that one race is superior or inferior to another.

You really hate America don't you.

 

[Carl in Michigan]

Wouldn't that mean all the board's trumples would be in jail?

 

[d0gbreath]

It's almost as if we're running out of things to criminalize in the land of the free.

 

[Muhammed]

Racism is incompatible with a free society.


I gave examples, such as:

Believing that one race is superior or inferior to another

Believing in conspiracy theories that target a certain race (e.x. believing that "the Jews" control the media).

Basically, we can treat racists the same way that Jews were treated in Nazi Germany, or that black people were treated in the era of Jim Crow. I think that society will always tend to dehumanize one group or another, so if we're going to, we might as well start dehumanizing racists, and maybe dehumanization would actually do some good for a change.

So you think you should decide what words constitute racism. Your extreme narcissism is pathetic.

 

[Papageorgio]

Racism is incompatible with a free society.


I gave examples, such as:

Believing that one race is superior or inferior to another

Believing in conspiracy theories that target a certain race (e.x. believing that "the Jews" control the media).

Basically, we can treat racists the same way that Jews were treated in Nazi Germany, or that black people were treated in the era of Jim Crow. I think that society will always tend to dehumanize one group or another, so if we're going to, we might as well start dehumanizing racists, and maybe dehumanization would actually do some good for a change.

So your solution to hate… is to become the thing you claim to oppose? Newsflash: justifying dehumanization ‘for a good cause’ is exactly how genocides start. Nazis didn’t think they were the bad guys either—they thought they were cleansing society of a threat.

You don’t get moral high ground by dragging yourself into the gutter. You’re not fighting racism—you’re just flipping the target and calling it progress. That’s not justice. That’s just cruelty with a smug smile.

And if you’re cheering on censorship and dehumanization, don’t pretend you believe in freedom. You believe in control. You believe in silencing people. And eventually, that kind of thinking comes for everyone.

 

[BlindBoo]

My thoughts are that racism has been pretty much soundly rejected by society, except for an uneducated fringe. Slavery has been abolished, and both the Republican and Democratic Party have people of various colors serving under them. And we all know that you can't be a racist and be a Christian. Jesus was a Jew and preached a message of love for all of humanity.

So, if we just made it a crime to express racist beliefs, we might be able to render the last vestiges of racism in our society obsolete. Seems like a win-win to me, and no one would miss the racists.

Here are some examples of what we could make illegal:

*Expressing hatred or violence toward people based on their race or skin color

*Expressing conspiracy theories about people of a certain racial group (e.x. Jews controlling the media)

*Expressing the belief that one race is superior or inferior to another.

I think we have laws that cover encouraging violence toward people.

Expressing hatred towards others and believing wacky conspiracy theories is protected by the constitution.

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

The only race traitors are Neo-Nazis. They make the rest of the race look and smell bad:

View attachment 1143475

Wales Is Finally Getting Well


Why, because Tommy Tainant won't join them? He wants to have his country overrun by Muzzie savages, because he's heard what really happens on the Arab Street, which never runs Straight.

The Netrix, as usual, is completely ignorant of the well-known Boys in Burkas.

 

[Fort Fun Indiana]

That's just a function of a culture and society in clear decay.

Or, it's a clear symptom of a society progressing into the future, much to the dismay of racists, bigots, Uber religious nutsacks, oligarchs, etc.