hatecrime

a catch-22

2007-05-01T11:50:00.000-07:00

it seems that there is no easy solution for the conduct on the web. you do not want to infringe upon the basic rights we are granted however you do not want to thrawt basic security you are entitled to just because hate crimes occur in the digital world. i believe as individuals we need to act more responsibly. a blogger's code of conduct is necessary to establish. while many blogger's say things that they would not normally say in person many make threats that they would never at on. when you voice your opinion you should expect scruntiny. you are willingly putting yourself out there and like the point kin made you do not know who your audience is in cyberspace so anything that you say even if you think it is non-contentious it probably is to a third party somewhere. ps i think that kathy sierra is annoying and if she was truly threatened about her safety she would not seek further publicity. she initiated more attention by accepting the role as the face of virtual hate crimes. i think everyone is well aware of what kind of feedback they might potentially receive by publishing their opinion online--if you're not ready for it then please refrain from doing so. online protection cannot be offered because of the vast digital world so don't expect some police man to be coming to your rescue because they are name-calling. as far as threats go yes that is serious and im not condoning this behavior but i don't think you should draw more attention to the situation if it does arise......

presentation feedback

2007-05-01T11:46:00.000-07:00

i think as a group we worked very well together. good job adam and kin! overall i think our presentation was good, we practiced a good pace, eye contact was apparent, and the clarity of speech was also evident. the major points of our presentation including an introduction of the first amendment, kathy sierra "schpeel" which in my opinion is really playing out at this point. the visuals i think were the strong point of our presentation and the comedy clip seemed to win audience attention and focused on a claim that no other group concentrated on.

Curbing our right to online freedom

2007-04-30T11:30:00.000-07:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/freespeech/article/0,2763,861717,00.html

A new initiative mean of fighting digital crime has come about. However, it's assumed the authorites would not have the ability to do so without extra powers. Now, nothing we write in an email, or attach to an email, or do on the internet, can ever be assumed to be private. The poilice should still receive our support since they are doing so to protect us. But, because of the Regulation of Investigatory Powers law, many people who are not victims or doers of online crime will become victims of the new laws.

New wave of humor is no laughing matter

2007-04-30T11:20:00.000-07:00

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117876281.html?categoryid=1007&cs=1

The article describes a new wave of humor that uses the Web and Hollywood to broadcast their ideas to the widest possible audience. The form of comedy has ambiguous motives and isn't afraid to takcle political issues. The website "Blackpeopleloveus.com," was created by Chelsea and Jonah Peretti. The site features photographs of joyous Caucasian "Johnny and Sally. They are surrounded by admiring African-American friends. The Perettis, created the site "to promote dialogue,"but they have received hate mail from neo-Nazis, and criticism from readers who don't get the joke.

Racist jokes lack humor, spur hate

2007-04-30T11:05:00.000-07:00

http://media.www.stateronline.com/media/storage/paper867/news/2007/04/11/Opinion/Racist.Jokes.Lack.Humor.Spur.Hate-2833297.shtml

The article works its way off failed attempts at racial humor. From Don Imus to Micheal Richards the made commentary was offensive. The writer conveys his negative attitude towards such statements. Even though the Imus and Richards may not really judge a race a certain way, they are reinforcing the stereotype when they just state it. The world is not laughing.

Police struggle to cope with online crimes

2007-04-30T09:31:00.000-07:00

http://technology.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,2065601,00.html

according to a senior officer of they British police, they are are struggling to keep up with the volume of online crime. He says that each individual online crime is impossible to be investigated. There are several ways to report online crimes, but no set system to correctly deal with them since htye are very unique. The head of online crime at the Serious and Organised Crime Agency indicated there was a growth of most sorts of internet crime.

Virtual Hate Crime Against Mel Gibson

2007-04-29T20:47:00.000-07:00

http://www.firstliberties.com/hate_crime_against_gibson.html

Before Passion of the Christ came out in theaters, National director of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Abraham Foxman was motivated to stop it. He was convinced that the movie would ignite a series of hate crimes against Jews. HE claimed that Gibson was affiliated with very anti-antisemitic views. Their opposition to the film led many Gibson fans to send "drive by emails" and hatemails to members of the ADL.

Web of hate

2007-04-29T20:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.salon.com/news/1998/10/16newsa.html

The article says how the Internet is playing a central role in the proliferation of hate crimes in America. They allow hate groups to recruit, network and plan events more easily than before. Some reasons for this include the lack of need for financial basis. A single Klansman is able to send a message to hundreds of thousands of people for free. A large portion of the hate sites have to do with homophobia and Neo-Nazism. The websites are presentable and very in depth.

the death of (icebox.com's) mr. wong

2007-04-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

http://us_asians.tripod.com/articles-mrwong.html

The writer of the article expresses her discontent with the online cartoon. The cartoon starred yellow-skinned, hunchbacked, squinty-eyed butler who spoke with a thick accent. Steve Stanford, the man behind the production of “Mr. Wong” emphasized that the purpose of shows such as “Mr. Wong” were strictly for entertainment and did not come with the intent to dehumanize or hurt any group. On the other side of the fence, there is huge opposition to the “racist” cartoon. The opposition was so large that the show soon began to lose its financial support and was forced to shut down.

shanelle's assignment

2007-04-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

Everyone should have the right to hold opinions without interference. Freedom of speech is the notion of an intrinsic human right to voice one's opinion. The principle of freedom of speech promotes unrestricted dialogue. Harassment, hate speech and obscenities are controlled but generally the right is endorsed so that people may express themselves without fear of punishment or censorship. Amendment one of the Bill of Rights states "Congress shall make no law....prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...."¹ Freedom of speech is a basic right guaranteed to every U.S. citizen. However, we cannot shout “fire,” in a crowded public place, threaten governmental administration, or publicly hate or defamize a people or group. Freedom of speech is debated as to whether it is protected or ultimately regulated. The degree to which the right is upheld in practice is a very contentious issue. What exactly counts as hate speech?

“If liberty of expression is not valued….freedom of expression is simply curtailed in favor of other competing values. Free speech only becomes a volatile issue when it is highly valued because only then do the limitations placed upon it become controversial….it will be limited because it always takes place within a context of competing values.”² Freedom of speech is already a hard thing to define by even the Supreme Court whose job it is to interpret constitutional law. This country can never uphold pure unadulterated free speech because there is need to strike a balance between the competing demands of liberty and the authority that is supports.

The issue boils down to how cumbersome we wish to make it for individuals to say certain things. The virtual world that offers unlimited space, transient personalities, and unconstrained knowledge presents a new environment where freedom of speech can exercise itself more liberally. When the mass proliferation of the internet began people initially thought such a technology could be blind, unbiased, and innocent. The internet is an environment that challenges our thinking. However accountability is sacrificed in the virtual world, and the escalation of hostility or humor, depending on which way you look at it, have no consequences in cyberspace.

Freedom of speech essentially focuses on the threat of a sanction. Punishment by the state is the most severe and one that occurs in only serious cases. But punishment by social disapprobation is one that not most fear. People will often refrain from making statements because they want to avoid the ridicule and moral outrage from others. The internet allows any individual to say anything they wish and then hide behind their online facad. In a virtual world this right enters an area of unlimited proportions and protection of the bullied is hard to maintain. The internet is tool that affords people to express their opinions in web pages and blogs. Surfing a variety of webblogs illustrates the diversity of peoples’ opinions and their respective accounts of reality. So many bloggers openly hate on women, minorities, liberals, pretty much any group you can identify. A virtual hate crime is one that is hard to classify. The restriction of free thought could be the disease of consciousness but compromising civil liberties is a basic infringement on our rights. Jurisdiction on the web must be defined because the transition of the web from a community to a battlefield has already initiated.

bong hits for jesus

2007-04-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

my assignment for the paper was the legality aspect of freedom of speech essentially providing framing the discussion and formulating the introduction. while collecting research i came across a case that made it to the supreme court involving a group of high school kids who got expelled because they held a banner that said, "bong hits for jesus," during an olympic torch relay. the argument the school made was was that it was not in accordance with the school anti drug policy by promoting illegal substances at a school sanctioned event. however the kids were not on school grounds. the public school system is outraged by this case. the supreme court has never addressed pro drug message in an educational setting so it will be interesting to see how they decide. the case is still pending it is just something i came across that i thought to be interesting.

to kin

2007-04-26T15:53:00.000-07:00

in small pieces loosely joined in the first chapter they frame their discussion on the AOL contraversy--how he typed a warning somewhat columbine reminiscent. maybe you can work this into your paper somehow because he actually got four month in a florida jail, and forbade to use the internet for three years. it also could be classified as a virtual hate crime because it is direct threat to someone in cyberspace.

paper assignments

2007-04-23T08:55:00.000-07:00

we have decided to break up the reflection accordingly:

shanL - legal precedent of hate crimes and the internet

adam - kathy sierre direct examination

kin - indirect illustration of american culture

Mooresville Teens' Attempted Jokes on Web Turn Serious

2007-04-22T22:42:00.000-07:00

Link

Two high school students of mooresville have been charged with a misdemeanors of cyber-stalking. They had created fake profiles of school administrators on myspace. The students used racial remarks and referred to one administrator as a lesbian. This was a joke between the students. However, when the school received news of it, they informed authorities. The majority of states have laws against cyber-stalking. The question remains, is this type of action really considered a crime?

Primary source- Kathy Sierra blog

2007-04-19T14:34:00.000-07:00

As I type this, I am supposed to be in San Diego, delivering a workshop at the ETech conference. But I'm not. I'm at home, with the doors locked, terrified. For the last four weeks, I've been getting death threat comments on this blog. But that's not what pushed me over the edge. What finally did it was some disturbing threats of violence and sex posted on two other blogs... blogs authored and/or owned by a group that includes prominent bloggers. People you've probably heard of. People like respected Cluetrain Manifesto co-author

http://headrush.typepad.com/creating_passionate_users/2007/03/as_i_type_this_.html

Kathy Sierra BBC story

2007-04-19T14:33:00.000-07:00

Prominent blogger Kathy Sierra has called on the blogosphere to combat the culture of abuse online.
It follows a series of death threats which have forced her to cancel a public appearance and suspend her blog.
Ms Sierra described on her blog how she had been subject to a campaign of threats, including a post that featured a picture of her next to a noose.
The police are investigating while the blogosphere has launched its own enquiry.
One of the issues raised is the question of how women bloggers are treated online.
Ms Sierra, author of popular blog Creating Passionate Users, began receiving death threats four weeks ago.
Since going public on the issue, she has been overwhelmed by the support she has received.
"I agonised about making this post but I hoped it would start a dialogue," she told the BBC News website.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6499095.stm

Internet Lynch Mob Targets Wrong Asian Gun Nut

2007-04-18T19:39:00.000-07:00

http://www.tripmastermonkey.com/archives/news_views/april_17_2007_internet_lynch_mob_targets_wro.php

Virginia Tech student Wayne Chiang was mistaken for shooter Cho Seung-Hui. He received an influx of views after the initial accusation. Many of the comments were filled with hate towards him and the whole Asian community. He had many similarities with the shooter such as being Asian, a collector of guns, and recently breaking up with his girl friend. He believed in the right to bear and conceal arms.

introduction draft

2007-04-18T09:14:00.001-07:00

Amendment one of the Bill of Rights states "Congress shall make no law....prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...." <http://usinfo.state.gov/usa/infousa/facts/funddocs/billeng.htm> When the mass poliferation of the internet began people initially thought such a technology could be blind, unbias, and innocent. The internet is tool that affords people to express their opinions in webpages and blogs. However accountability is sacrificed in the virtual world, and the escaltion of hostility or humor, depending on which way you look at it, have no consequences in cyberspace. The restriction of free thoughtcould be the disease of consciousness but comprimising civil liberities is a basic infringement on our rights. Jurisdiction on the web must be defined because the transition of the web from a community to a battlefield has already iniatiated.

introduction brainstorming notes

2007-04-18T09:10:00.000-07:00

the start of the web, how did this change our thinking??

what is amendment one and specifically what does it say??

what are the consequences of hate crimes on the web??

what is a hate crime??

accountability issues, who has jurisdiction on the web??

web culture taking o social norms.

ways that culture uses humor, e.g. Imus situation

Kathy Sierra hate crime

2007-04-16T06:38:00.001-07:00

The Kathy Sierra episode has been weighing on my mind over the past week. While there's been some excellent commentary on it (Joan Walsh's take at Salon, which I quote below, may be the best of the bunch), I'd like to take a bigger step back, and look at the episode in the context of what we know about misogyny, hate crime, and authoritarianism.
What happened to Kathy Sierra is a hate crime. Let's be very clear about that. Sending death threats via the Internet is a criminal offense. And a hate crime, by definition, is a crime that's committed with the intent of "sending a message" that will intimidate an entire group, and change their behavior in ways that will ultimately marginalize and silence them. Whether or not Sierra would actually be able to use hate-crime law in a court case is a matter of jurisdiction; but by the definition and intent of hate-crimes law, that's what this was. Sierra was threatened because she was a woman -- and the purpose of the attack was to silence any woman who dares to raise her voice in a blog.

More...

http://reclaimthemedia.org/media_justice/virtual_hate_crimes_misogyny_o=5084

ACLU Says Hate Crimes Bill Protects Free Speech

2007-04-16T06:37:00.001-07:00

Broadcasting & Cable) _ Under a bill introduced by Senators Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Gordon Smith (R-Ore.) and supported by the American Civil Liberties Union, bigoted comments would still be considered protected speech
On Thursday, the ACLU praised the bill, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007. The bill will allow federal law enforcement officers to more easily investigate and prosecute hate crimes. The ACLU said it was the first time it has been able to support a hate crimes bill because it balances the desire for a federal response with protections of free speech and association.

More...

http://animators.digitalmedianet.com/articles/viewarticle.jsp?id=127413

How hate crimes and the law interact

2007-04-16T06:33:00.000-07:00

On September 14, 2005, the House of Representatives suddenly passed 223-199 the federal “anti-hate” bill, the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2005. It was inserted as AMDT.2662 into the Children’s Safety Act. Despite all odds, the Senate Judiciary stripped the hate bill S.1145 from the Children's Safety Act on October 20th 2005, thanks in many parts to the loud voices of many broadcasters and talk radio listeners who helped reveal the reality and consequences of the hate bill.
Yet like all these draconian, freedom hating pieces of legislation, there are attempts afoot to quietly attach it to other bills and get it through on the sly. Senator Edward Kennedy is determined to reattach the hate bill, unmodified, to The Sex Offenders Registration Act, S.1088. If that fails, he may attach it to the Streamlined Procedures Act. Kennedy's staffers have told Reverend Ted Pike, one vigilant exposee of the hate bill, that they are confident of victory, considering the Senate's 65-to-33 vote in favor of the hate bill last year.
In light of these facts, let us again go over the details of the "hate bill" and further expose it for the freedom destroying and unconstitutional bill that it is.

http://infowars.net/articles/october2005/311005hatebill.htm

Facebook group lands USC football player in hot water

2007-04-15T20:28:00.000-07:00

Link

Several members of USC's football team created a facebook group under the name "White Nation." The group featured a picture of a black baby in handcuffs. The image's caption followed: arrest black babies before they become criminals. although the group was created as an inside joke between the football players, Stefanie Gopaul, Freshman decided that the group was inappropriate for the public eye. She took action by making her own group expressing the team's anti sentiment towards blacks. Matthews, the creator of the team quickly follow suit.

Blogger code criticized

2007-04-12T21:15:00.000-07:00

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070412.wgtcyberfile0412/BNStory/PersonalTech/home

The article discusses the issue regarding sexism and Kathy Sierra. A proposed code of conduct enforced on the Web was debated and criticized. It would be hard to regulate and hard to consistently determine the integrity of all material. Kathy herself claims that the code would have little effect. Hate and vulgar acts online have slowly become acceptable online. Few people are taking measure to prevent it. Her solution would have members of the communities to speak out against the ranters themselves. Her biggest fear is that the series of events have curbed many voices of her gender.

Cyber-bully threat to teachers

2007-04-12T21:09:00.000-07:00

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2007150303,00.html

Students are about to take snapshots of their teachers and instructors. The pictures are embarrassing since they were taken after malicious acts by students such as one after the pulling down of trousers. Although these students are reprimanded, the instructors are unable to regulate what goes on the Web. These students will reveal the embarrassing media by placing them online. Some employees even use this data for job recruitment.

unit 4 contract

2007-04-09T09:25:00.001-07:00

“Virtual” Hate Crimes Group

Scheduled Meeting Times:

Group will hold meeting one day a week and more time will be allocated if needed.

Group can meet on Tuesdays on Thursdays.

Strategies for division of tasks:

Since a 5 page collaborative reflection paper is demanded. Each member will contribute two pages towards the paper on the assigned groups/viewpoints and a 5 page paper will be edited to turn on the presentation day.

Each member will work on his or her respective slides and group member will email Kin to put together the final power point.

Each member should be adequately prepared for their presentation expectations and will practice their portion of the project.

Each member is expected to post on blogger.com on our group tumbleog that will eventually become our montage.

Strengths:

Kin: good with computers, creative thinker, good listener

Shanelle: strong writer, good speaker

Adam: creative, and eloquent with words

Expectations:

Group will be punctual, respectful, contributive, and hard working in regard to group members, meetings, and project.

Kin Yang: __________________________________ (4/9/07)

Shanelle Mohawk: ____________________________________ (4/9/07)

Adam Biswanger: _____________________________ (4/11/07)

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2007-04-09T08:51:00.001-07:00

this post holds place