Arts Integrity Initiative: At a time in the life of America when The New York Times has been compelled to create a column called “This Week in Hate,” some localized instances of actions that are overtly oppositional to a culture that embraces all people, regardless of race, religion, sexuality, gender identity or disability, can still run the risk of being seen as too small bore for widespread attention and revulsion. But if they are not called out, if the public is not made aware, then there is the ever-present risk of such actions becoming normalized, simply a part of modern life with which we must live.
2 comments:
While i am a firm believer in freedom of speech the rise in hate speech should be attacked. While people have every right to spout racist B.S. we have the right (and responsibility) to counter them with both logic and moral arguments. I completely agree that the removal of the signs was not an act of censorship because it was vandalism. If the group wanted to hand out flyers in a public place they very well could but they would face opposition from those who dont agree with their views. And its just that this group works like this because they do not wish to directly interact with people who oppose them. i feel if you have a solid argument in something even if its controversial, you should feel confident that you can make that argument when asked to. But the fact that group worked covertly to post signs around campus merely shows that they are weak and cowherds.
As anyone who has known me for any significant amount of time can tell you, despite my parents having moved to the greater Philadelphia area when I was fifteen, I still very much consider myself from Seattle. My older siblings both stayed in the area when we moved and my brother in fact attended the University of Washington for his undergraduate degree. Needless to say I thought that the University of Washington, nestled in the ultra liberal bubble of the Pacific Northwest that I grew up in, would be removed from the turmoil that has encapsulated the rest of the country. Even before I read this article the headline brought home the current rise of hate speech and hate crimes in a very real way. Theatre is my safe space. The Pacific Northwest is my safe space. Safe spaces are being destroyed everywhere and although this is a tiny event when compared with some of the horrors that have happened since the election, it was shocking to read about. I think that the freedom of speech is incredibly important, it’s what makes it safe for someone to told an “Abortion is Murder” sign at the Women’s March while protected by a police officer and for other, less extreme counter-protesters to hold their own signs and beliefs and march peacefully alongside the rest. But when these posters are covertly put up the object is clearly not to spark intelligent debate, but to inspire fear, hatred, and suspicion.
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