One of the things that far too many people in the United States presume, especially in conservative circles, is that hate speech is harmless.Try peddling that crap to someone whose people have been on the wrong end of it.
Minority groups know all too well that hate thoughts lead to hate speech which leads to hate violence. If we don't get a grip on that hate violence it can escalate to genocidal levels.
We've been having in the trans community lately a debate about 'tranny' and whether it is as people on one side of the argument claim is a harmless word that needs to be reclaimed or as people on the other side of the debate contend is a hateful slur with no redeeming value..
I've also heard arguments from the 'you're giving the word too much power by obsessing over it' arguments from some quarters of the community as well.
People of color and the Jewish community know all too well that the slippery slope to genocide that starts with hate speech greasing the skids. If is continues and isn't checked at that point, hate violence and eventually genocide aimed at the targeted group by the tyrannical majority isn't too far behind.
For decades transpeople have had a coalition of groups and institutions comprised of radical feminists, faith based conservafools, fundamentalist churches, right wing politicians and right wing talk show hosts pimping fear and loathing of transpeople for their fun, profits and political agendas.Their unwashed sheeple take those words to heart and used their hands, fists, sticks, stones. clubs, guns, knives and other implements to hurt and kill transpeople after being influenced to do so by hateful words either penned or spoken by them against transpeople..
Words hurt. Words like 'tranny' dehumanize, and they lead to people hurting and killing transwomen at the rate of two per day around the world.
And it needs to stop.
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