Just because hate speech is protected by the First Amendment in the United States Constitution doesn’t mean that it can’t cause harm. There are no governmental consequences for using hate speech, but should it still be tolerated by the general public?
First of all, what is hate speech, and what makes it different from normal speech? In its Strategy and Plan of Action on Hate Speech document, the United Nations defined hate speech as “any kind of communication in speech, writing or behavior, that attacks or uses pejorative or discriminatory language with reference to a person or a group on the basis of who they are, in other words, based on their religion, ethnicity, nationality, race, colour, descent, gender or other identity factors.” Hate speech, although not regulated by the United States government, is not tolerated on some independent platforms, such as Youtube. In Youtube’s hate speech policy, it states that hate speech is not allowed and that they take down content that promotes hatred or violence against people based on certain aspects of their identity such as age, ethnicity, disability, immigration status, among others listed.
Hate speech can come in many forms. It can be found in videos, public posts, speeches, everyday language, etc. However, not all hate speech is put on display publicly, and a lot of it stems from smaller comments and conversations. A passing remark that is discriminatory against gay people can be made in a conversation without consequence, especially if the people surrounding the comment don’t find it necessary to call it out. This perpetuates the idea that discriminatory and derogatory language is acceptable in conversation, and without it being called out at these seemingly smaller levels, the speech can be carried over into more public conversations and levels where it can cause legitimate harm to the groups and/or people the speech is targeting.
Other countries around the world have passed legislation on hate speech. According to The Legal Project, in Denmark, the spread and expression of racial hatred is classified as an offense under the Danish Criminal Code. In the United Kingdom’s Public Order Act of 1986, “a person who uses threatening, abusive, or insulting words or behavior, or displays any written material which is threatening, abusive, or insulting, is guilty of an offense if: a) he intends to thereby stir up racial hatred, or; b) having regard to all the circumstances racial hatred is likely to be stirred up thereby.” Many other European countries have rules surrounding hate speech and the difference between it and freedom of speech, unlike the United States.
Freedom of speech is an essential part of the United States and its foundation. However, hate speech should not be tolerated, and should actively be called out when heard, despite the fact that it is allowed under the First Amendment. Although it could seem harmless when just in the form of comments, the language and thoughts it promotes has the possibility of intensifying into tangible discriminatory actions, intolerance, and hatred for certain identifying factors of people or groups.