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 These
hateful remarks were among 428 hate speech comments recorded in
buildings at a large university over a four month period (Hate Report
Committee, 1998). They serve as a reminder that a college environment
is not a safe haven for all. Hate speech is defined as speech that
perpetuates a negative attitude or stereotype of an individual or
group based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion,
disability, political beliefs or affiliation with a student group.
Hate speech includes perjoratives or symbols that are negative,
(e.g., "fag", "nig"); implications of depravity, weakness or inferiority
(e.g., "slut"); objectifying the individual or group (e.g., "women's
only purpose is to get f____ by men and cook" ; expressing blatant
disgust (e.g., "Islam sucks") ; or advocating or threatening violence
directed toward the individual or groups (e.g., "kill all queers").
There is little doubt that hate speech can be "words that wound."
Given the animosity expressed in hate speech, it is perhaps not
surprising that victims often are devastated by it. Hate speech
can cause fear, anxiety, difficulty breathing, nightmares, post
traumatic stress disorder, hypertension and even psychosis and suicide
(e.g., Delgado, 1982). Hate speech, particularly when combined with
illegal actions such as vandalism, theft, battery, etc., has caused
people to leave school, quit jobs, change residence halls, move
to a new neighborhood, and avoid public places.
 In
some instances, hate speech can be so severe as to constitute a
denial of equality under the law. For instance, derogatory sexual
comments might create such a hostile environment for a woman that
she would be deprived of her right to equal opportunity in employment
or education. Racist comments similarly make the classroom a vastly
different educational experience for its targets African-American,
Hispanic, Asian students than for white students.
Hate speech became a concern on college campuses in the late 1980s,
in response to an increase in hateful epithets and threats. Between
800,000 and 1,000,000 students each year are affected by serious
hate speech incidents (Ehrlich, 1995). One in every five minority
students experience hate speech during an academic year and many
of those victims face repeated incidents. The increase in hate speech
is most often attributed to a lashing out by white male students,
once a dominant and privileged constituency on campus, who resent
increased opportunities for minorities and women. The desire to
put these "interlopers" in their place was reflected in the graffiti
cited earlier. About 40 percent of the hate speech remarks were
directed at gays and lesbians, 24 percent were aimed at women, and
six percent derogated nonwhite racial/ethnic groups (Hate Report
Committee, 1998).
Confronting the problem of hate speech has been a thorny issue.
Attempts to regulate it in order to guarantee equality sometimes
inadvertently impinged on free speech. However, court decisions
that have favored first amendment rights have not provided protection
for the victims. There appears to be no easy solution to this conflict
(Shiell, 1998).
If hate speech is condoned on campus, another problem arises. Behavioral
manifestations of hate speech such as discrimination and
violence also may come to be regarded as socially acceptable.
For example, Karen Franklin (1998) found that one in ten college
students surveyed at community colleges in California admitted they
had performed acts of physical violence against gay men and lesbians.
When asked what motivated their gay-bashing, most of the students
indicated that they "didn't see anything wrong with it." Fraternity
houses and residence halls are key sites for hate violence. The
social norms of some fraternities promote racist or sexist values
that condone hate violence (Sanday, 1990).
"It
is easier to smash an atom than a prejudice" is a saying that is
eloquently illustrated by hate speech and its correlates, discrimination
and hate violence. College students are not immune from such prejudices.
However, a college education has been shown to significantly reduce
such attitudes. By senior year, students show strong shifts toward
greater political, racial, ethnic, and gender tolerance (Pascarella
& Terezini, 1991). Educational programs specifically designed
to improve intergroup relations among college students would help
reduce prejudice even more effectively.
Suzanna
Rose, Ph.D., is director of Women's Studies and professor of Psychology
at Florida International University.
Poster,
Free Speech Doesn't Mean Careless Talk!, c. 1941-45
Designed
by Es-Ar-Gee
Published
by The House of Seagram, Seagram-Distillers Corp., New York
Lithograph
1993.1.48
Credit:
Gift of The Ringling School of Art and Design, Sarasota, FL, The
Wolfsonian-Florida International University, Miami Beach, Florida
REFERENCES
Delgado,
R. (1982). Words that wound: A tort action for racial insults,
epithets, and name-calling. 17 Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties
Law Review, 133.
Ehrlich,
H. J. (Winter, 1995). Prejudice and ethnoviolence on campus. Higher
Education Extension Service Review, 6 (2), 1-13.
Franklin,
K. (1998). Unassuming motivations: Contextualizing the narratives
of antigay assailants. In G. Herek (Ed.), Psychological perspectives
on lesbian and gay issues: Vol. 4: Stigma and sexual orientation
(pp. 1-23). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Hate
Report Committee (1998). The Hate Report. Columbia, MO:
University of Missouri.
Pascarella,
E. T. & Terezini, P. T. (1991). How college affects students.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Sanday,
P. R. (1990). Sex, brotherhood, and privilege on campus.
NY: New York University Press.
Shiell,
T. C. (1998). Campus hate speech on trial. Lawrence, KS:
University Press of Kansas.
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