Abstract
What is this issue? Is there a way to put a handle on all of these disparate incidents of racially and sexually motivated expressions of hate? University of Hawaii law professor Mari Matsuda has offered one definition, a definition focusing on these expressions from the perspective of the target. Matsuda defines racially motivated hate expressions as the manifestation of the structural reality of racism in the United States. As such, these messages are ones of "threats, slurs, epithets, and disparagement (that) all hit the gut of those in the target group." Matsuda's description of hate expression creates a metaphor of physical revulsion of such expression. Matsuda believes that such expression should not be protected by the First Amendment, and given that the targets of such expression are people who have been historically stigmatized, harassed and denied recourse, legal restrictions on such speech is the only viable alternative.
Journal Title
Iowa Journal of Speech Communication
Volume
23
Issue
2
First Page
23
Last Page
32
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Sandmann, Warren
(1991)
"The Case for the Right to Reply: Empowering Victims of Racially-Motivated Hate Speech on the College Campus,"
Iowa Journal of Communication: Vol. 23:
No.
2, Article 4.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/ijc/vol23/iss2/4
Copyright
©1991 Iowa Communication Association
