Has Hatred Grown Since The Passage of Civil Rights Laws?

Recently I wrote an article entitled “What happened to the “civil” in civilization?” In it I spoke about the shooting at the Holocaust Museum, and my interaction as a young man with victims of the Holocaust. I also mentioned the shooter at the museum; he had a web site that he used to express his views of the world. With the recent shootings around the country I began to wonder if there was more hatred than when I grew up in the 1960’s, this prompted me to post the poll question.

One day after posting that article I was at my office reviewing cases for upcoming disciplinary hearings, one of the cases for revocation of his law enforcement certification is a part time officer that had lied on his application about being a member of the KKK. I also received an intelligence report talking about upcoming meetings various groups were planning; most were spreading the word via their web sites.

I remember talking with some other law enforcement officers when Senator Obama was elected President. We were talking about how far this country has come, but were also concerned about the different hate groups (and individuals) were really going to get “cranked up and come out of the woodwork.” This also got me thinking about if there were more “hate” groups then in the past.

Obviously the population has grown since the 1960’s. With the increased population the hate filled philosophy will grow, after all these people will teach their philosophy to their children and some of those children will adopt their parents’ philosophy. Some, but not all, there is no indication that the family of the museum shooter held the same views as he did. Except for this, I doubt that hatred has really had as profound an increase as some would believe. If I am correct; then why does it seem as if hate is more prevalent that in the past?

I believe that we hear more about hatred now, then before because of other changes. When “Bull” Connors had the police dogs turned loose on Civil Rights Protesters there were three (3) networks, no satellite trucks, no cable news, and no Internet to spread the news. We have gone from three stations to hundreds with twenty four (24) hour coverage (back then television stations and some radio stations went off the air during the overnight hours). There have been other changes as well, the internet is one. The Holocaust Museum shooter wrote a book in 1981 espousing his belief/ hatred.

When he wrote his book he had to find someone to publish the book, and then the marketing and selling was limited to word of mouth, gatherings and such. Now he can (and did) create a web site to write his views without publishing a book. If one chose to write a book about their philosophy it can be marketed around the world via the internet and it could be obtained with a lot more anonymity.

The internet has allowed people the opportunity to express their opinions freely with a sense of security that their identity will not be discovered, it allows them to come out of the proverbial racist closet. People feel free to voice hatred for their boss, their neighbor, family members, so why not race. Just look at some sites out there that were begun to allow professionals from other parts of the country, and world, to share information on trends in their profession. Take a look at the chat rooms of those sites that do not require a person’s identity to be posted with their comments; it’s amazing how venomous people can become when they don’t have to put their names to their comments. In addition to their identity being concealed, a person can go on the internet without disclosing their location. You can post on an American group's web site from any corner of the world.

Lastly, I believe that there is less censorship than in the 1960’s. With the expansion of the cable and satellite networks the type of content has vastly grown from four decades ago. Even on “regular” television the FCC is not as strict as they were, except of course for Janet Jackson’s “wardrobe malfunction” during the Super Bowl Halftime Show (in that case people discovered their moral compass real quick). Radio and music content is less restricted as it was back then. You never would have heard someone on the radio in the 1960’s singing a song entitled Cop Killer.

When you look at the changes in society over the last forty years hatred hasn’t increased as dramatically as it appears, the ability to share one’s view, philosophy, and intolerance has!

That’s My Opinion, What’s Yours