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We've got hate crime laws even though we already have murder, assault and harrasment laws. Might just be another way of tacking on extra punishment due to the
by dx87 8y ago
We've got hate crime laws even though we already have murder, assault and harrasment laws. Might just be another way of tacking on extra punishment due to the nature of the crime.
- TallGuyShort 8y agoThat's not really what hate crime laws are, though. They're all about the motivation. Reforming a person who threatens to kill because they're angry about a personal dispute is very different from reforming a person who threatens to kill because they don't like the color of someone else's skin. The difference between libel and "cyber libel" is just the medium. Arguably it'd be more like the difference between how the 1st and 4th amendments should be applied in your home vs. on Facebook. But like the GP, I'm not aware of specific cyber libel laws or charges.
- jordigh 8y agoHate crime laws exist because hate crimes have a worse effect on society. Someone being killed because they were (say) black makes other black people afraid of being killed for the same reason. Hate spreads and can motivate other aggressors. Non-hate crimes don't have this effect. They don't make a group feel afraid, singled out, and specifically targetted.
- hopler 8y agoWhen a man beats his wife regularly, is that a hate crime against women? Why or why not?
- markovbot 8y agoA better comparison would be homicide vs vehicular homicide: it's got a different name when done with a different medium