The Dangers of Hate-Crime Laws
I risk being called a racist for this. My better judgment is telling me not to make this thought public, but my gigantic ego is telling me to not be a fairy and put it up like man.
I’m thinking we ought to abolish hate-crime. What is hate-crime? Basically, what happens is, if I, a “Mexican-American” (I prefer just “American”, thank you very much) beat up a gay man, and while doing so, call him derogatory names in reference to his homosexuality, like “queer” or “faggot”, my punishment will be more severe. My targeting of his demographic for a crime makes my punishment more severe. There are difficulties with this.
First, it hints of racism, or sexism, or any kind of negative -ism. Why? Well, lets say a white man and a black man get into a street fight. Then, the black man calls the white man a cracker. What would have been a fine in court is now prison time because suddenly it’s a hate crime. This may imply that the race of the white man is somehow more valuable to his being a person than not. Question: ought a person because of their race, sex, sexual orientation, etc., be treated any differently because of that? No. That would be racism, sexism, orientationism (because homophobic is not the appropriate word!). This is also, by the way, the reason affirmative action is racist. But if that is true, then why ought we treat it as a factor in determining crimes or punishments?
Secondly, this could possibly lead to a kind of Orwellian thought-crime. For example, when we try people for murder, we can also add “pre-meditated murder” as a crime. But can pre-meditating murder, even if it isn’t carried out, be a separate crime? It can and is. But if the mental actions of a person are criminal, such a premeditated murder, then why can’t racism be tried as a separate crime? It seems like there is no logical inconsistency here. But surely, I ought to have the liberty to think, even say, this person is a porch monkey, or this person is a wetback, or this person is a queer.
“Oh, Adrian, you’re a racist!” No I’m not. Just because I think we ought to have the right to think or say racist things doesn’t mean I think that we are right in thinking or saying racist things.
I’m thinking we ought to abolish hate-crime. What is hate-crime? Basically, what happens is, if I, a “Mexican-American” (I prefer just “American”, thank you very much) beat up a gay man, and while doing so, call him derogatory names in reference to his homosexuality, like “queer” or “faggot”, my punishment will be more severe. My targeting of his demographic for a crime makes my punishment more severe. There are difficulties with this.
First, it hints of racism, or sexism, or any kind of negative -ism. Why? Well, lets say a white man and a black man get into a street fight. Then, the black man calls the white man a cracker. What would have been a fine in court is now prison time because suddenly it’s a hate crime. This may imply that the race of the white man is somehow more valuable to his being a person than not. Question: ought a person because of their race, sex, sexual orientation, etc., be treated any differently because of that? No. That would be racism, sexism, orientationism (because homophobic is not the appropriate word!). This is also, by the way, the reason affirmative action is racist. But if that is true, then why ought we treat it as a factor in determining crimes or punishments?
Secondly, this could possibly lead to a kind of Orwellian thought-crime. For example, when we try people for murder, we can also add “pre-meditated murder” as a crime. But can pre-meditating murder, even if it isn’t carried out, be a separate crime? It can and is. But if the mental actions of a person are criminal, such a premeditated murder, then why can’t racism be tried as a separate crime? It seems like there is no logical inconsistency here. But surely, I ought to have the liberty to think, even say, this person is a porch monkey, or this person is a wetback, or this person is a queer.
“Oh, Adrian, you’re a racist!” No I’m not. Just because I think we ought to have the right to think or say racist things doesn’t mean I think that we are right in thinking or saying racist things.
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