A woman was filmed screaming the n-word 14 times at CVS https://apple.news/APG7ub0HdQq63dHeOJpou7Q As the white woman screamed in the drugstore entrance about wanting to lynch her fellow shoppers, it didn’t take long for the cellphone cameras to come out. “I hate [n-word]s!” the woman yelled over the chatter of a CVS cashier in Los Angeles this week, sunglasses shielding her eyes, before repeatedly using the n-word to exclaim that she “would kill” and “lynch” black people. —— there are other similar incidents linked in the man article for me, this illustrates why special laws are required to suppress racism.... to make it illegal in at least some contexts. (Public accommodations) and, by extension, i think there is similar vitriol that can be directed towards jews, or muslims, or gays, or transgender people. This is why there are laws about this. i am interested to hear the opinions of those who think such anti discrimination laws are unnecessary, inappropriate, or abusive, or freedom infringing. Perhaps you acknowledge such incidents happen, but just do not think the government has any role in addressing this issue..... btw, hiw this woman behaved IS NOT ILLEGAL, but i think it is clear that what ever laws there are inhibit how her behavior would otherwise be.... after all, she says that she would kill all ******s if she had that option... so it is pretty clear that she would abuse ******s however she was legally allowed to do so
Should not be illegal. She should be escorted out of the store and told she's not welcome to come back for 8 weeks.
The farthest I would go is to say that if she continually goes around in public threatening to kill groups of people (and it has been documented on multiple occasions) maybe she should be ordered to attend state sponsored diversity training classes. (But I want to emphasize that I would want to be very very careful about how any such law is worded, because inevitably these types of laws tend to set slippery slope precedents over time, and the public sees it as acceptable to criminalize more types of behavior.)
Ardy, I think this conduct is illegal under CA Penal Code Section 415. Penal Code 415 PC is the California statute that defines the crime of "disturbing the peace" (and sometimes referred to as "breaching the peace").1 A person can commit this offense by: Unlawfully fighting, or challenging another person to fight, in a public place, Disturbing another person by loud and unreasonable noise; if this is done willfully and maliciously, and Using offensive words in a public place, if the words are likely to provoke an immediate violent reaction. I would think that what you described would fit #3. The maximum penalty for this crime is 90 days in jail and a $400 fine.
California also has hate speech laws (of sorts) on their books and could probably prosecute this woman under that. Look up the Ralph Act. The state courts likely wouldn't protect it under free speech because technically "violence" was threatened. I wouldn't agree with that interpretation of the law, but state prosecutors would likely have no qualms about using it that way.
Strange people do strange things. Disturbing the piece would definitely fit the bill. A full 90 days hopefully would settler her down or would it make her more hateful?
I heard a black woman in a park call her child "Nigress". Apparently that was the little 4-year-old girl child's name. no joke She called out to the child several times to try to get her to come back, because she was wandering off. So I'm pretty sure I wasn't just misinterpreting it. I wanted to go up to the woman and ask why she named her daughter that, but I didn't want to draw her ire. (She seemed a little frustrated and didn't seem to be in the best mood, kind of a big woman too, probably keeping up with her rambunctious little daughter was tiring her out)
Acts of blatant racism are disgusting. But the thing is if becomes illegal what stops people abusing the law, calling out people unjustly.
Real hard evidence a line has been crossed would be needed. I don't know how that line would be defined though ? Also it would also have to apply racism directed towards every race and religion.
I agree about racism directed at any or all races, but would religion be included? I suppose it might be. But women have a right to call out some religions, and so do gay people. If some religion demonises and persecutes you, you might well retaliate in kind.
Jews and Muslim get a lot of hate for example, even more than race some might argue. Hmm do women really have the right to hate on religions? Why?
I was thinking about Islam and the way they treat women - look at Saudi for example - and the RCC and their stance on contraception. Some fundamentalist Jewish sects also treat women as second- class citizens.
Yeah, I tend not to associate with people who exhibit racism. I might support laws against racial, gender, sexual persuasion, or most forms of discrimination but, I stop at supporting laws that penalize people for their speech (unless inciting violence or disturbing the Peace as Bullock notes above )... I prefer knowing who the racists are, listening to them spew hate more often than not, is a deterrence of such behavior by rational people rather than a recruitment to it and, for me, let’s me know who not to engage with at any level. Letting them talk is often as good as putting a sign over their head.
I'd be very concerned about letting extreme cases (like this) set precedents for other behavior, because ultimately that has a ratcheting effect, and courts will over time interpret laws more broadly than originally intended. Obviously no one is going to have a very high opinion of that woman losing control and making a scene. She obviously had an emotional breakdown. Anyway, bottling up hate and preventing freedom of expression is not good, it could ultimately lead to something worse, potentially. Better that women blew off verbal abuse than take things physically.
exactly why we can't make speach illegal, only actions... give an inch... and we'll be censored from speaking out against our government/leaders...
Already happened in the UK. We had a member in this forum, Peter Dow, who was arrested for speaking out against the Queen, using moderately violent language, but in a way that was obviously in a figurative context. He said they took some of his important research papers from his house and never returned them.
In 1919, such behavior would have been acceptable. Respectable preachers gave sermons that all Jews and Non-Christians are worthy of Eternal Suffering. By 1980s, such rhetoric was only acceptable for High School students. Fortunately, Modern Society recognizes that Racism is Evil.