Hate speech in internet

Day 2,865, 10:14 • Published in Belgium Belgium • by tommot
Hate speech in internet.

This article is an approximate copy of text made by CzarnaArcher(Deviantart).
I do not claim any rights to this text. I just feel the content of this article is of great importance to this game and it's forum as i see this kind of behavior almost everyday despite efforts to prevent it.
Sun Sep 20, 2015, 2:52 PM
This day I wish to write about hate speech in internet and methods of preventing and fighting it.

Anyone who's been on-line for some time had some sort of contact with trolls and bullies in internet. You could be the victim or be a witness of such shameful behaviour. Not all troll or bully posts can be considered as hate speech, but even those relatively mild ones can ruin one's day. More so, a relatively mild post can lead to more aggressive ones, be that by the same troll/bully or someone inspired by them.

This is why it is so important to prevent and fight hate in internet.

Prevention is both easy and hard. It is easy because all you have to promote is good manners by giving an example. It is hard because that's pretty much all you can do to prevent Hate in internet: lead by example.

Fighting Hate is another subject. Hate in internet in itself is a complicated subject. Sometimes it is a single hater and sometimes it is organised group of haters who pour buckets of hate over people just for fun.
In all cases of Hate the procedure is the same: react.

In Poland (for example) hate speech is illegal and falls under penal code under articles such as:
article 119. treating about illegal threats and violence aimed at minorities;
article 196. treating about insulting religious feeling;
article 212. treating about slander;
article 256. treating about propagating Fascism or any other totalitarian system or incitement to hate on the national, ethnic, racial, religious or irreligious background;
article 257. treating about insulting based on ethnic, national or racial origin;
and others.
Of course we should always react to the hate speech first and ponder about penal code articles later (as not all Hate falls under the code and some of it is simply insults and rudeness).

Most haters think that if they will not sign their posts that they are anonymous, which of course is not true. The only thing they achieve is that their name won't show, but the admins and authorities won't have problems finding them. Neither will other internet users if they will only put some effort to it because it is fairly easy to localize such hater (and give him a call for example, or contact their boss if they're posting from company computer).

If you see a simply rude or insulting comment you should contact the admin, if you feel particularly afflicted by them inform of considering taking legal steps (you do not have to take them but it is your right to consider doing so). If the comment has all signs of hate speech (defined in your country country of the hater or country where the site is registered) you can contact authorities and report it.

So, in sum, when you are a victim of hate speech or you are a witness of hate speech:
1. Tell the hater that you will not tolerate his behaviour.
2. React:
a) contact the admin/moderator of the site/forum/service;
b) contact authorities.
3. Promote good manners in internet by your own cultural and respectful posts.

You can also report hate speech by special internet sites. For example in Poland such a site is zglosnienawisc.otwarta.org where you can report hate speech.

Do you know of any similar sites (that you can report hate speech) in your countries? Were you victim or witness of hate speech?


Hate speech in internet.
by CzarnaArcher - username on Deviantart(no, not me)
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