[Benn Roe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpartanSP43

I also disagree with the notion that hate is the same severity as rape, pedophilia and murder. The feelings of hate can change, the acts of what I listed cannot be.

Again, I hope this is just a miscommunication of terminology, but the existence of hate does active damage too. Rapists can feel remorse for their actions, but it doesn't undo the damage they've done. The same is true of people "changing their minds" about being bigots and contributing to the spread of hate. It doesn't help people feel safe or even mitigate any specific damage they may have actively caused by continuing to spread that disease. I'm sorry, but the existence of racists is the threat. Individual racists changing their minds doesn't absolve them of complicity, and excusing their speech as "just their political beliefs"--in the name of moderation, bipartisan compromise, or whatever else--is perhaps the most insidious means of enabling hate.