Why We Should Resist Hate with Free Speech, Not Censorship
Social media makes it easier to purvey hate speech, but it also makes it easier to purvey counter speech.
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Most of us are repulsed by hateful actions and feelings, and it often seems that the easiest — and most just — way of getting rid of hate is by getting rid of the speech that promotes it. Nadine Strossen has dedicated her career to the defense of civil liberties, and as a champion of the First Amendment, she cautions us to remember that speech, painful as some of it might be, is justifiably protected. Where divisiveness and rancor describe our civil discourse, she argues, we must be even more vigilant against the temptation to censor, despite how repugnant some expression might be. There are better ways to combat hate.
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