Free Speech vs. Intimidation and Inciting Harm

[Bill Glasheen]

Not too long ago, a great deal was made of nooses being displayed, and a reason to consider said displays "hate crimes." The history of this goes back to times in the South where whites tried to intimidate non-whites with burning crosses and displays of nooses.

Campus Noose Sparks Hate Crime Probe
Lynching Symbol Discovered Outside University of Maryland Black Cultural Center
By DAVID SCHOETZ
Sept. 10, 2007

A noose was left hanging from a tree limb near a black cultural studies center on an American college campus.



That's the scenario that University of Maryland police, with help from the FBI, are investigating as a possible hate crime that may be tied to a similar racial controversy playing out in Louisiana.

Students and faculty at the university's Nyumburu Cultural Center reported the noose to police Friday afternoon, Paul Dillon, a spokesman for the University of Maryland Police Department, told ABC News. The building has been a meeting point for the university's black students and faculty for 27 years. Nyumburu is the Swahili word for "freedom house."

The noose already had been removed by the maintenance staff when police first took the report, but not before an unidentified student took a picture of the scene and e-mailed the image to police. It shows a roughly 3-foot white rope hanging 10 to 12 feet off the ground and ending with a small noose.

Police issued a campuswide e-mail Friday night regarding the discovery and marking the beginning of the formal investigation.

"We will treat this like any other serious crime on campus," Dillon said, "interviewing witnesses and developing a timeline."

It remains unclear when the noose was originally hung from the tree and who may be behind the apparent hate message. Dillon said creating a timeline will be key and might allow investigators to pinpoint surveillance video of the area showing the perpetrator or perpetrators.

There is recent precedent for racially motivated disputes on the Maryland campus. In 1999, police investigated a series of disparaging letters sent to some of the university's black leaders. No charges were filed, Dillon said, but police did "get to the bottom" of the harassing letters.

Connection With the 'Jena Six'?

Dillon also would not rule out a connection between the noose found on the College Park, Md., campus and the ongoing, high-profile racial controversy in Jena, La. Racial tensions remain high in the Louisiana town as sentencing awaits five of six black teenaged students from Jena High School on charges tied to the beating of a white student in December. A sixth student was charged as a minor.

Well... Apparently the consideration isn't universal. Out in West Hollywood, a couple of gay gentlemen...



... find this entertaining.






The gentlemen readily admit that if they had done this to a Barack Obama mannequin, they would have had objects thrown through their windows.

It's Halloween, after all. And this is Hollywood cinematic license. And it's all in good fun.

It's harmless. And it's protected speech. Right?

- Bill

[TSDguy]

I get that the bottom one is McCain being portrayed as the devil for Halloween (based solely on the Obama reference) but what the hell is the middle photo? It looks like a 17th century French aristocrat.

[TSDguy]

At any rate, I'm not sure the lynch mob noose from the original story should be a hate crime. That's an awfully grey area, and I wouldn't be upset if it was. It can be taken as death threats, and there is certainly a precedent and history behind that.

The reason I don't think it should be is because you charge people on crimes they commit, not on crimes they might commit.

I'll just let the judges work out the constitutionality of it all.

[Bill Glasheen]

what the hell is the middle photo?

[TSDguy]

They did a really terrible job. Why isn't she wearing glasses and lipstick at least? And I'm pretty sure that's a male mannequin.

[Bill Glasheen]

Why isn't she wearing glasses and lipstick at least?

"She" is wearing glasses in some photos. I couldn't find one online that I could hotlink.

In an interview published on this CBS affiliate, the authors volunteer that it is Palin being hung in effigy. There is no mystery here. There is no desire to play ignorant.

Halloween Palin Prop Sparks Controversy In WeHo

- Bill

[TSDguy]

The McCain sculpture is not hostile at all, in my opinion. The only thing that makes it seem like they intended either of these to be hostile is that they think it would be if it was Obama/Biden. Whatever.

The more interesting issue is what happens with the campus noose.

[Bill Glasheen]

The McCain sculpture is not hostile at all, in my opinion. The only thing that makes it seem like they intended either of these to be hostile is that they think it would be if it was Obama/Biden. Whatever.

The more interesting issue is what happens with the campus noose.

You aren't being very clear here.

What is permissible in all these scenarios, and why?

• A noose hung outside the Black Student association at University of Maryland.
• A noose hung in town in Jena, LA during/after the trial of "The Jena Six."
• A cross burned on the front lawn of an African American.
• An individual saying "I think the president should be killed."
• An effigy of Sarah Palin hung in public by two men who readily admit their place would be stoned if they did the same of Barack Obama.

Here's another question. If Palin being hung in effigy is deemed "free speech", then what precedent is set?

- Bill

[TSDguy]

My issue is did anyone commit a crime. For the campus noose, I don't know. Need more info. It could absolutely be taken as a death threat, because that's what hanging nooses in front of black people has meant.

This goes for all of your below scenarios, they are all using something that has historically been a death threat (often carried out).

If it's not considered a death threat, I'm not so sure there is a crime committed (other than vandalism and trespassing or something). Like I said, charge people on crimes committed, not crimes they have the potential to commit. In other words, KKK rallies burning crosses are fine. The same people trying to find a black family to kill but finding out they aren't home and leaving a burning cross in their yard to say "we're going to kill you" is not fine.

Hanging a Palin effigy does not strike me in any way as a death threat. If it gets deemed that, ok, but I would be very surprised, especially given the silliness of the accompanying McCain devil sculpture.

Hanging an Obama effigy would be in absolutely horrible taste given the history of blacks in America, but again, it doesn't strike me as a death threat. Unless you leave it on his lawn.

[TSDguy]

New post for this last thought...

I think we should ALWAYS err on the side of free speech. If you can't clearly prove something is a crime, don't try to play head games and say "well the campus noose-hangers probably wanted to kill someone." And no thought crimes allowed. I fully support the right for comic book publishers to publish obscenity and over the top graphic violence and sex, I support the right of people publishing pedo-stories online, I support the right of neo-nazis to burn books. Go for it, just don't infringe on anyone else's rights.

[Valkenar]

I think it's all about context.

I don't think the Palin thing is something to get worked up over. It's the same as if someone hung Biden in effigy in a clearly humorous context. Now if you were to march down the street with these effigies, screaming angrily, that might be a situation where you call foul on the basis of intent to incite violence or what have you.

In this context, however, I wouldn't call it a threat. If you put Obama in a noose it would be more threatening but if you were to show him dread from drinking poisoned Kool-aid or something, that would obviously just be a joke. As far as I know, Sara Palin doesn't have any traits that make the noose an especially potent symbol.

And personally, I wouldn't freak out if someone did hang Obama in effigy with Biden beside him dressed up as a devil. Even with the relevant symbolism it just doesn't seem like something that should be forbidden.

* A noose hung outside the Black Student association at University of Maryland.

* A cross burned on the front lawn of an African American.

One big difference between these two and the Palin effigy is that in these cases the symbols are put on or near the property targeted by the gesture. That's a lot more threatening than having it on the property of the person making the symbol.

[Glenn]

The gentlemen readily admit that if they had done this to a Barack Obama mannequin, they would have had objects thrown through their windows.

Speaking of which, this from my alma mater: Obama effigy found on University of Kentucky campus

Obama effigy found on U. of Kentucky campus
School president plans to personally apologize to the Obama family
Associated Press

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Authorities at the University of Kentucky are trying to find out who hung an effigy of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on campus.

College spokesman Carl Nathe said it was found hanging from a tree Wednesday morning. Police immediately took it down.

School President Lee Todd says that he plans to personally apologize to the Obama family on behalf of the university and that he is "personally offended and deeply embarrassed by this disgusting episode."

It's the second time an effigy has been found on a college campus recently. Earlier this week, George Fox University in Oregon said it was punishing four students who confessed to hanging a likeness of Obama from a tree.

Palin incident
Secret Service agents recently visited a California home where a mannequin of Sarah Palin hangs from a noose.

Deputy Special Agent in Charge Wayne Williams says so far that incident seems to be a harmless, though unusual, Halloween display.

He tells The Associated Press they are not treating it as a threat.

But local officials aren't quite as accepting of the display, which also features John McCain surrounded by fake flames coming out of the bungalow's chimney.

West Hollywood Mayor Jeffrey Prang has urged resident Chad Morrisette to remove the mannequins, and Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich is calling for an investigation into whether the effigy constitutes a hate crime because it targeted the candidates based on their political affiliation.

"Had this stupid act been done to Senator (Barack) Obama, there would appropriately have been a national outcry," he said in a statement.

Hate crime or free speech
County Counsel Ray Fortner said he would discuss the matter with the district attorney and report back to Antonovich with a legal opinion.

Prang said Morrisette had the right to create the display, but "I strongly oppose political speech that references violence — real or perceived. I urge these residents to take down their display and find more constructive ways to express their opinion."

Morrisette said he has no plans to take down the effigy before Halloween. He said he and his partner, Mito Aviles, created it about three weeks ago but didn't expect to cause such a stir.

"If it's a political statement, it's that (McCain's and Palin's) politics are scary to us," Morrisette told The Los Angeles Times. "This is our palette and this is our venue of expression."

Neighbors didn't mind at first, but the media's fascination with the display has neighbors concerned about negative coverage reflecting poorly on the neighborhood, they said.

"We don't want to make enemies with anyone," Aviles said. "This isn't what it was supposed to be about."

Law enforcement officials said the display is protected by the First Amendment and does not violate any city, state or federal laws.

Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the department received at least 60 calls from around the country complaining about the effigy.

[Bill Glasheen]

Speaking of which, this from my alma mater: Obama effigy found on University of Kentucky campus

What a surprise! (Not!) Stupidity, hate, and thoughtlessness begats... well you get the idea.

If Palin being hung in effigy is deemed "free speech", then what precedent is set?

From Glenn's article...

LEXINGTON, Ky. - Authorities at the University of Kentucky are trying to find out who hung an effigy of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama on campus.

College spokesman Carl Nathe said it was found hanging from a tree Wednesday morning. Police immediately took it down.

School President Lee Todd says that he plans to personally apologize to the Obama family on behalf of the university and that he is "personally offended and deeply embarrassed by this disgusting episode."

Meanwhile... a similar effigy of Palin was also found on the same campus. However School President Lee Tod has not (yet) planned to personally apologize to the Palin family.

What a surprise! (Not!)

... what precedent is set?

In this context, however, I wouldn't call it a threat. If you put Obama in a noose it would be more threatening but if you were to show him dread from drinking poisoned Kool-aid or something, that would obviously just be a joke. As far as I know, Sara Palin doesn't have any traits that make the noose an especially potent symbol.

Have you ever run for president, Justin? Ever heard of a fellow by the name of George Wallace? It took me 10 seconds to find this in Wikipedia.

Assassination attempt

Wallace was shot five times by Arthur Bremer while campaigning in Laurel, Maryland, on May 15, 1972 at a time when he was receiving high ratings in the opinion polls. Bremer was seen at a Wallace rally in Wheaton, Maryland, earlier that day and two days earlier at a rally in Dearborn, Michigan. As one of the bullets lodged in Wallace's spinal column, Wallace was left paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of his life. The three others who were wounded in the shooting also survived. Bremer's diary, An Assassin's Diary, published after his arrest shows the assassination attempt was motivated by a desire for fame, not by politics and that President Nixon had been an earlier target.

Back to Glenn's article and the Palin effigy.

Morrisette said he has no plans to take down the effigy before Halloween. He said he and his partner, Mito Aviles, created it about three weeks ago but didn't expect to cause such a stir.

"If it's a political statement, it's that (McCain's and Palin's) politics are scary to us," Morrisette told The Los Angeles Times. "This is our palette and this is our venue of expression."

- Bill

[Glenn]

Meanwhile... a similar effigy of Palin was also found on the same campus. However School President Lee Tod has not (yet) planned to personally apologize to the Palin family.

What a surprise! (Not!)

Where are you seeing this Bill? I hadn't heard that an effigy of Palin was found at UK, and I don't see it in the article I posted.

Kentucky, Lexington, and UK have definitely their racial issues in the past, including KKK presence, so the Obama effigy does not surprise me at all. Sad though, and definitely does not help anything.

[Bill Glasheen]

Meanwhile... a similar effigy of Palin was also found on the same campus. However School President Lee Tod has not (yet) planned to personally apologize to the Palin family.

What a surprise! (Not!)

Where are you seeing this Bill? I hadn't heard that an effigy of Palin was found at UK, and I don't see it in the article I posted.

AM 1140 WRVA radio (Richmond) at about 5:30 PM today.

- Bill