There is much talk these days about the freedom to say
what you want. It's our inalienable right to speak our minds, they are only words,
they can't hurt you.
In the 90s, I was in the U Fleků pub in Prague
drinking a house-made beer. We had just been to the Old Jewish Cemetery and
were discussing, in English, the experience while looking through the book I
had purchased at the museum shop.
Into the crowded pub came two skinheads that sat down
right next to us in the only available seats, and after glancing at the cover
of the book began making disparaging and threatening comments in German about
Jews. My boyfriend spoke to the waiter, in English, telling him that these guys
were saying horrible things, and that, together with the glances we threw their
way, let them know we could understand their words perfectly.
Thankfully, they left after only one drink.
Soon the vacant seats were filled by two American
guys. We got to chatting and I told them about what had just happened. I
expected them (naively in retrospect) to agree with our wish to have the
skinheads confronted, or better, told to leave, but instead I got a perplexed
look, well, more than perplexed, an offended look. They have a right to say
what they want, it’s freedom of speech, said the guy I was talking to.
Despite the fact that I grew up in the US, that was my
first encounter with this interpretation. Maybe it’s because I grew up on the
West Coast, maybe it’s because of my upbringing, but hitherto, my notion of
freedom of speech was that you could criticize those in power without fear of
persecution, not spewing out hate about others with impunity.
And all these years later, this freedom of speech
argument/excuse has grown more apparent. Found in every comment section on the
internet, I am thoroughly sick of it. Freedom of speech is being misused and
abused.
If what you’re saying has the potential to reinforce
marginalization and incite violence, then keep it to yourself. This isn’t
censoring or inhibiting freedom of speech. It’s not fascism or extreme
political correctness, it's disabling the spread of hate.
It's often the people most vocal about free speech
that have something bigoted or racist to say or their opinions have connections
to such things. And when people react, they claim they are being cancelled or
controlled. So, they want the freedom to say anything, but no one can react?
But people will react and that reaction can include telling you to stop. If you
want to say nasty or outright horrible things about others, don't feign
surprise that the bulk of society turns against you.
Furthermore, if what you are saying or doing
aligns with Neo-Nazis, then you need to have a deep think about your actions
while, if need be, promptly and publicly disavowing their presence.
But there are those who never seem to do this, instead
they hide behind some vague excuse of innocence, dismissing it as nothing to do
with them. Nope! If Neo-Nazi’s are drawn to you, or you find their presence in
circles that you frequent (online or otherwise) then something is wrong. One
should never align themselves with such a mentality for any reason unless you
agree with it. There is no blurred line.
People should feel uncomfortable to voice hateful
opinions. There should be unspoken taboos about what can be said and, for a
time, there were. But steadily, these taboos are being broken. I’m well aware that
the US imported Nazis into the country after WW2. I’m, of course, aware of
America’s home grown white supremacists, the KKK. I’ve seen the film American
History X. Yet, when I was a kid it would have been unthinkable to see a brazen
display of Nazi salutes in public. Worldwide, this mindset is becoming more
visible online and in public.
Alas, this is a no win situation. Because if you
“censure” people, it makes them likely want to say it more, empowering them
with a sense of righteousness.
When does this "freedom of speech" become
lies and slander? When does it become propaganda? When is it responsible for
violence?
The version of the saying “Sticks and Stones” that I
learned as a child ended with, 'but words will never hurt me'. I disagree.
Imbued with the feeling of the speaker, words are mighty and can leave deep
wounds and long lasting scars.
No matter how you learned that saying, either ending
in words can or cannot hurt you, the question is, when do hateful words lead to
sticks and stones?
And when will the speakers of these words admit to the
hurt and potential violence they can cause. Be they potent innuendos or blatant
hate.
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