A Dilemma? (Dee Speaking)
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• Hate speech does not have the impact you suggest. In the case of African Americans, for example, political participation is up from 30 years ago. There are many black newspapers and magazines. We now have a black cable TV channel. There are black organizations on scores of campuses where there were none 30 or 40 years ago. There are several dozen black congressmen. The very existence of the hate speech debate only shows that blacks have a larger voice than before. Your facts are incorrect. If you were right about the power of hate speech, none of these things would be true.
  

• Even if it is true that hate speech has some of the impact you describe, it does not follow that the only way to solve the problem is to formally restrict it on campuses or in society at large. It is quite possible that other means are available except for some of the worst cases. (In the worst cases, where speech is used to harass an individual, I agree that it should be restricted.)

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