Countering Hate on the Internet - A Rejoinder
Amsterdam Law Forum, Vol. 2, No. 2, pp. 125-132, 2010
8 Pages Posted: 23 Feb 2010
Date Written: February 22, 2010
Abstract
Steve Newman of York University wrote a reply to my “Holocaust Denial Is A Form of Hate Speech”, Amsterdam Law Forum, Vol. 2, No 1 (2009), pp. 33-42. The Editors of Amsterdam Law Forum invited me to write a rejoinder, answering Newman’s critic. The result is this article in which I reiterate that Internet providers and web-hosting companies should abide by their own rules of conduct. If their terms of service disallow hateful messages on their servers then they should not host or provide forums for Holocaust denial. I further tell the story of Sabina Citron showing that Holocaust denial can cause people severe offence, upsetting them to the extent of loss in their self-esteem. Further, I argue that hate speech can and did translate to hate crime. Some hate mongers are not satisfied merely by the sound of their pounding words and wish to see blood. Finally, I propose ways for countering hate on the Net.
Keywords: Hate speech, hate crime, Holocaust denial, ISP, Web-hosting companies, rules of conduct
JEL Classification: A00, Z00
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation