Hate Speech

Hate Speech

Hate speech refers to a threatening speech that expresses prejudice from one group to the other. This is mostly based on race, sexual orientation, and religion. It is essential for America to put in place a hate speech law. One is because it is going to protect violence. For instance, hate speech can fuel the hatred between groups of different backgrounds, causing them to become violent toward each other. Stengel 2019 claims that the public cannot distinguish between what is right and what is wrong, and therefore, they are likely to believe whatever is heard or whatever is written. An excellent example of how hate speech can work to bring violence between one group to the other can be seen in the cases of Martin Luther King jr and Malcom X. Martin Luther King Jr wrote a letter while in Jail talking of all the things that he did not like and how the white was against the African American. This letter worked to incite the African Americans against the white community (King Jr, 2002).  It was after reading this letter that they were aware of the injustices that were happening towards them.  However, Martin Luther King jr did advocate for peaceful means, but Malcolm X told the people to use whatever means necessary. Malcom X said the black community to protect themselves by any means necessary. He was very vocal about injustices that the black community was facing. This fueled violence between the black community and the white community (Malcom, 1964).

References

King Jr, M. L. (2002). Letter from Birmingham city jail. In Civil disobedience in focus (pp. 74-90). Routledge.

Malcolm, X. (1964). The ballot or the bullet. April, 3, 23-44.

Stengel, R. (2019, October 29). Opinion | Why America needs a hate speech law. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2019/10/29/why-america-needs-hate-speech-law/