Stigmatizing state expression as hate speech
Paul C. Quinn · 2019
This chapter examines the existence of potentially relevant criminal law and the possibility of applying it to figures connected to the state. It looks at varying approaches that are taken in different jurisdictions towards harmful speech. The chapter also looks at the effect rules on immunity for public figures are likely to have in instances where hate speech law might be applicable to certain stigmatizing state expressions. Through the Supreme Court’s judicial interpretation of its First Amendment, it has positioned itself at the more fundamentalist end of the spectrum in terms of its protection for individual free speech. The limitations imposed by the US Constitution resonate at the centre of a decades long debate in the US concerning the permissibility of hate speech legislation. The defamation of a minority group, through hate speech, undermines a public good that can and should be protected: the basic assurance of inclusion in society for all members.