Bernie Farber wrote an excellent article on Richard Warman yesterday regarding his campaign against cyber hate and the resulting vitriol directed at him as a result:
Vilified Internet hate crusader was the real hero
Friday, June 22, 2012
With
the repeal this month of Section 13 of the Canadian Human Rights Act
(CHRA), which dealt specifically with hate speech on the Internet,
regulating poisonous and hateful attacks against minorities is now left
to the Criminal Code. Where in the past S13 was a less intrusive and at
times educational method of dealing with hate speech, now any such
complaints will be handled by police with jail time and a criminal
record as a possible outcome.
A key figure who utilized S13 to
help defend ethnic and faith minorities against toxic speech is a friend
and a person I consider a hero, Richard Warman. Sadly instead of
gratitude Richard was victimized for his efforts.
While many did
engage in a rational debate on S13, some scurrilously targeted him. It
appeared they were more interested in their freedom to hate as opposed
to their freedom of speech. In order to accomplish their goals they
utilized the well worn technique of historical revisionism where they
would take a grain of truth and build upon it a mountain of lies.
It
was said of Richard Warman for example that he launched frivolous cases
attacking people’s rights to free speech. The truth of course is much
different.
Richard launched 16 cases that went to the Canadian
Human Rights Tribunal (CHRT), virtually every one of those cases
involved outright calls for genocide and/or ethnic cleansing. For
example in Warman v. Harrison, Richard Warman was able to prove that the
defendant, Craig Harrison, made repeated calls for genocide against the
Aboriginal, black, Jewish and francophone communities. Here are some of
the messages posted by Harrison:
“kill anyone who is not white because god says so.”
“god says rise up and kill all whites who date blacks.”
“i
saw a film clip on the holohoax were (sic) a kid and his mother were
separated in the camps! imagine how more worse the world would be if
hitler hadnt (sic) fried all those jews! i wish i could have been in
charge of the gas chambers!”
There was also the case of Warman v.
Canadian Ethnic Cleansing Team (CECT) et al. In this matter the CECT, a
vile white supremacist group, called for attacks against mosques,
synagogues and members of the Muslim and Jewish communities. According
to the hearing decision, the CECT posted the following from then
American neo-Nazi leader William Pierce:
“If we want our kind to
survive on this planet longer than another generation or two, then we
must clear the cobwebs of Christian superstition and Jewish propaganda
from our minds and face the facts without being squeamish ... we must
have exclusive possession of those portions of this planet which
constitute suitable habitat for us ... in order to obtain and maintain
that exclusive possession, we must be prepared to kill, to annihilate,
any and all competitors ... racism is God’s gift to any race that wants
to survive. Racism is healthy and natural and essential, and we had
damned well better clear of (sic) minds of the Judeo-Christian lie that
it is evil and wicked and nasty and lowbrow.”
Another of the 16
cases, Warman v. Kyburz, involved Fred Kyburz, who posted material
calling for genocide against the Jewish community. He seemed obsessed
with trying to spread hatred about Jews. Much of his material was
garnered from the aforementioned American neo-Nazi leader William
Pierce. Indeed the three CHRT members pointed out the depravity of
Kyburz’s targeting of Jews, writing:
“On October 25, 2000, Mr.
Kyburz published an article written by William Pierce, entitled ‘There
will be Hell to pay.’ This is a lengthy article — one quite remarkable
in the level of vitriol that it directs at Jews.”
They noted the
article deals with many issues, including the neo-Nazi canard that Jews
control the media and the production of child pornography and that as
such they “should be exterminated root and branch as a class.” Further,
it makes the argument that the slaughter of every Jew in Russia would be
a justifiable act.
Virtually all of Richard Warman’s cases brought before the CHRT involved similar hate and poison to the few examples here.
For
the most part the remedies on these complaints were fines and cease and
desist orders. Richard, in helping to remove such vitriol from the
Internet himself became a victim. Richard was the poster boy for those
who believed they were saving Canada from the “censors.” In reality it’s
Richard Warman who was the hero for shutting down some of the most
vicious hate sites ever established.
Thanks to the same
individuals who targeted Richard Warman, S13 has been repealed in
Parliament. But in the end this is not a victory for free speech; it’s a
victory for hate speech and we are the lesser for it.
Bernie Farber is a human rights advocate.
© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen
The usual suspects (some of whom we have discussed here and who have gleefully subscribed to the anti-Warman mantra) have claimed that the CHRT was a, "kangaroo court" in which, "truth is no defense."
Got to ask... what is truthful about:
“i saw a film clip on the holohoax were (sic) a kid and his mother were separated in the camps! imagine how more worse the world would be if hitler hadnt (sic) fried all those jews! i wish i could have been in charge of the gas chambers!”
“i saw a film clip on the holohoax were (sic) a kid and his mother were separated in the camps! imagine how more worse the world would be if hitler hadnt (sic) fried all those jews! i wish i could have been in charge of the gas chambers!”
???
In Calgary, police are searching for an individual who verbally assaulted three people in a store:
Police are seeking victims and witnesses in an allegedly unprovoked
verbal attack in which three people were berated with racial slurs.
Two men and a young girl were confronted inside a convenience store on March 9 about 9:30 p.m.
Police say a man tried starting a fight with the shoppers and used
racial slurs while verbally attacking them. The attacker and victims
were not known to one another, according to a news release.
Witnesses inside called police and escorted the victims from the store at the 4500 block of 8 Ave. S.E. until police arrived.
Police describe one victim as a black male, 30 to 40 years old, over
six feet tall, wearing a puffy, white, down-filled winter jacket and
blue jeans.
He was with a girl believed to be three to five years old, wearing a
pink and white winter coat with a hood trimmed in a fur-like material.
The other male victim is described as black, 25 to 35 years old,
approximately 5 foot 8 inches tall with a shaved head wearing a white
hoodie with lettering across the chest and blue jeans.
Police believe they have identified a suspect and are asking the victims and witnesses of the attack to come forward.
Anyone with information about this case is encouraged to call Crime Stoppers anonymously.
3 comments:
Assuming you mean John when you say "JM" then you're off base. At the time of the "attack", John was (and is currently) working up north. Just sayin'.
Not related to this post, but something to look into -
http://www.calgarysun.com/2012/06/22/calgary-police-looking-for-victims-of-racial-attack
That's a good one... "JM" working. lmao.
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