Hate Crime to Hate Speech: The Road to Perdition

By: Selwyn Duke

The precedents you set really do matter. In my recent piece, , I mentioned that the concept of â€œhate speechâ€ is a corollary of that of â€œhate crime.â€ The brief reference was probably glossed over by most, but it is in fact such a significant element in our Orwellian gutting of the First Amendment that it warrants exposition.

In an older work of mine, I endeavored to prove that hate crime laws are an attempt at thought control. The same could be said of hate speech legislation, but the relationship between these two categories of law is much more direct than a mere sharing of a common goal. Letâ€™s examine this. (Note: Henceforth when I use the words hate/hateful, I mean them to be understood as â€œideas defined as hateful by the powers-that-be.â€)

The effect of hate crime law is that it empowers the authorities to administer harsher punishment when hateful motives are discerned. For example, letâ€™s say that two identical violent acts are committed. The first act is deemed a regular (I suppose, politically correct) crime, and the perpetrator is sent to prison for ten years. The second crime, however, is labeled a hate crime, so the perpetrator receives twenty years. Now, this begs the question: What are the extra ten years imposed in the second crime for? Well, we know that ten years were all the act itself warranted because thatâ€™s what was handed down when only the act was considered. Thus, I would assert the following: The additional punishment is for the ideas or thoughts expressed through the act.




Caesar should undertake only that which is his rightful province and leave unto God the things that are God’s. Thus, while spiritual betterment consists in striving to hurt no one in thought, word or deed, only the last of these is the concern of rulers. But it now seems that government would don a divine mantle as it proscribes not just harmful deeds, but words as well. One should shudder to think what might befall us if little â€œgâ€ ever developed the technology to read thought.

After my article about the loss of free speech was published, I was deluged with email, and some of these respondents wanted to know what could be done about our impending loss of freedom. So now Iâ€™ll present a few suggestions.

In keeping with the principle that â€œThe best defense is a good offense,â€ we traditionalists need to take the offense. Itâ€™s not enough to just combat the movement toward hate speech laws â€“ we need to eradicate the hate crime laws that are just one step up on the devolutionary ladder. Thus, instead of just seeking to maintain the status quo, we must attack the source and try to get Big Clairvoyant out of the hate business.

As to this matter, while pressuring legislators to rescind hate crime legislation is imperative, the bureaucratic machinery of the hate police must be dismantled as well. Hereâ€™s what Iâ€™m talking about.

In previous pieces I included many examples of individuals who were persecuted for unfashionable use of the tongue. And while many others document these cases as well, whatâ€™s usually not emphasized are the bureaucracies that do the dirty work.

So, hereâ€™s what you must know: These bodies are often known as â€œHuman Rights Commissions,â€ which, once empowered to play God, often develop adjuncts known as â€œHuman Rights Tribunals.â€ Of course, whatever â€œhuman rightsâ€ they purport to protect, the right to free speech is not among them. But one example involves the case of Hugh Owens, a man I mentioned who was for criticizing homosexuality. He ran afoul of the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission and its tribunal.


And more are being spawned every year.

Oh, theyâ€™re not punishing people for violating the hate policeâ€™s precepts yet, but just wait until those precepts become law. These Orwellian institutions will be positioned to hit the ground running.

But â€œHuman Rights Commission,â€ ah, it has such a ring to it. Only an ogre sporting a white sheet would oppose an entity with a name that suggests such a noble mandate. And hate crime sounds as bad as human rights commission sounds good. And now that weâ€™re accepting a new boogeyman of a category called hate speech . . . .

Itâ€™s sad really. One of the best things about man’s nature is that most people can’t be seduced into embracing evil knowingly. One of the worst things about man’s nature is that most people can be seduced into embracing evil unknowingly. You certainly can fool enough of the people enough of the time.

About The Author Selwyn Duke:
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