Another integrity test for the biased and rotting American Civil Liberties Union. According to their long-standing mission, coming to the defense of two students being prosecuted for saying bad word would be automatic. So far, though, not a peep. Will the ACLU stand up for the Bill of Rights when the breach is so clear?
I’m not holding my breath.
In Houma, Louisiana, Two high school students have been arrested and accused of hate crimes after video circulated on social media of them using the term “nigger” on the high school grounds. Their words were not directed at any individual, yet they face charges of inciting a riot, hate crimes, and cyberbullying.
You can’t do this, you know. The government can’t punish anyone criminally for mere words, and it doesn’t matter what they are. OK, you have my obligatory agreement that “nigger” is a haeful epithet (when used as an epithet) and it’s use cannot be condoned and shouldn’t be encouraged or ignored, yadayada, but if that’s the reason almost nobody is pointing out the more essential truth that the Constitution protects us from sanctions by the government for ugly, mean, hateful or controversial speech, a lttle emedial instruction on core civil liberties is greatly neededd.
Yoooo Hooo! ACLU-hooo! Where the hell are you-hoo?
Consider this news report about the incident from the local Fox News–you know, the supposedly conservative one?—outlet. It tells us that…
- “It’s disgusting, it’s terrible,” said Lt. Travis Theriot with Houma Police. “That’s absolutely [not] something that this police department nor this town condones.”
They don’t have to condone it, but they cannot show their disapproval by using government authority. First Amendment 101.
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“Superintendent Bubba Orgeron says the video displays despicable language and thoughts. ‘This type of behavior and disgusting display of content will never be tolerated by our school system,’ Orgeron said in a statement.” Maybe the school can punish the students for conduct on the school grounds and for denigrating other students in such a way that it risks interfering with the educational process. Maybe. But not for their thoughts and opinions, and not using the criminal system.
- “’In my previous 16 years, there was nothing to this magnitude,’ said Roosevelt Thomas, a former school board member. ‘I thought those days and time were gone, but evidently you have some people who still seem to have a different impression of people and want to call them different names.’”
….as they have every right to do, you totalitarian asshole. Is a re-education center next? This community really seems to think that the government can and should punish citizens “who still seem to have a different impression of people and want to call them different names.’
- “The most important thing, I think, it sends a message to the community, from the school standpoint that it won’t be tolerated and from law enforcement that it won’t be tolerated also,” said Jerome Boykin, President of the Terrebonne Parish chapter of the NAACP.
The message it sends is that speech and opinions are being punished by the government, so watch out what you say. The school has limited jurisdiction to punish language (but never opinions) and law enforcement has none.
Meanwhile, in the Fox story, there is no explanation at all about the government abuse of rights occurring here, and that is much, much more important than a couple of stupid kids showing off.
Just checked the ACLU website again under “Free Speech” news. Nothing.
First they cam for the kids that said “nigger,” and I did nothing, because it’s a bad word.
Then they came for the adults who said “Let’s Go Brandon,” and I did nothing, because they’re assholes…
Then they came for me, because I said I thought affirmative action was wrong and that prices were too high…
Ethics Alarms 
“The very aim and end of our institutions is just this: that we may think what we like and say what we think,” said Oliver Wendell Holmes. Well, not so much under our leftist-progressive government.
School grounds or not: What if they yelled “All Republicans are assholes?” Or, “You’re such a queer!” These are kids. Ugly kids. Nasty kids. Ignorant kids. But where will this end? Let’s send them (and their parents) off of China-style re-education camps.
Granted the N-word has taken on special negative significance in our society, for good reason. But how soon will we have a list of words which, upon their utterance, force the speaker to face governmental, even criminal punishment? Frankly some of the liberal cant I’ve heard Democratic candidates espouse, and the personally negative comments they’ve made about their Republican opponents, would rank right up there with the N-word, if anyone would pay attention.
This is why I disagree with the notion that freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences.
Actually, it does.
I was just getting ready to send this to you.
The kids don’t need the ACLU they just need a lawyer that graduated with a barely passing grade. The kids should own the town for a civil rights violation and because it was directed at white kids only perhaps a hate crime by the school board and police officials.
The lesson that needs to be learned is don’t trample on people’s rights just because you think you are righteous.
Screw waiting for the ACLU. They have no credibility anymore.
Well, I don’t know about the ACLU — this is the sort of thing they used to defend but don’t any longer.
What I did was to submit a case to FIRE. We’ll see if that has any impact.
What I will also say is that, while I have limited resources, FIRE is an organization that gets a bit from me every month. I appreciate what they have done.
Thanks for the reminder. FIRE is a great advocate.
“The most important thing, I think, it sends a message to the community, from the school standpoint that it won’t be tolerated and from law enforcement that it won’t be tolerated also,” said Jerome Boykin, President of the Terrebonne Parish chapter of the NAACP.
What will he say when members of the Black community are arrested for using the same words or others deemed to be pejoratives to other races? A word’s usage cannot be acceptable for some and not others otherwise we have an equal protection issue as well.
Who educated these idiots.
Could be they heard the word used, friendly like, between black students ….
It seems the word “nigger” is offensive only to White liberals and leftists who use it to persecute, but certainly not blacks. Spend some time in their local habitats and you’ll discover that word is a normal part of their daily vocabulary, and no one thinks anything about it.
Also, that notion that freedom of speech doesn’t mean freedom from consequences is an unconstitutional leftist justification for censorship. If there are consequences associated with speech that someone may not agree with, then there is no freedom of speech.
I would suggest that Jerome Boykin of the NAACP is enjoying his new-found oppressor role.
I will give credence to the feigned fury over the word when the Black community demands it be stricken from their vocabulary, and from their entertainers.
I always hold that if a word is deemed offensive, it must be offensive to all and by all. The word cannot be canonized in one societal sector and anathematized in another.