Haters, hate speech, phobia and morality - Everyone can fall. Everyone can be raised.
In the ongoing debate over hate speech, freedom of expression, and the limits of discourse, one pattern emerges repeatedly: many who advocate for criminalizing certain forms of speech do so with the assumption that they themselves will never be subject to the same scrutiny. The reason is that they believe that their own words, perspectives, and values are intrinsically virtuous and morally correct, therefore, they are immune from censure. If they thought that their thought could be subject to condemnation the way they condemns divergent voices, their virulence and desire of punishment would immediately become more evanescent. Yet they are quick to call for severe consequences for those who express views they find offensive. This raises profound questions about justice, consistency, and the nature of human fallibility. At the same time, there exists a striking contradiction in the way some people approach justice. Many who seek to criminalize words and opinions—especially regarding gend...
