Hang an empty noose and you are committing a hate crime. Place the picture of a noose on the cover of a magazine, in order to start dialogue, and you will be criticized by Barack Obama and fired. Show a noose with a mock hanging of Barack Obama, and you certainly will get the attention of the Secret Service.
But hanging Sarah Palin in effigy is art?
This is a pure example of why so-called “hate crime” legislation is wrong, as it affords special status and privileges to one set of the population over another. Why is an empty noose or the symbolic hanging of a black man worth being fired over or arrested, while the symbolic hanging of a white woman is considered nothing but Halloween fun?
Displaying a noose is a symbolic threat. At best it is an attempt to shock and start dialogue, at worst it is an expression of violence and hate. Hanging someone in effigy is even worse. It doesn’t matter what color they are, no one should encourage or participate in such speech. But it is still speech, and unless accompanied by some other threatening language or action… as disgusting as it is… it should be considered free.
Those who are excusing this symbolic hanging of Sarah Palin best understand the precedent they are setting. If hanging one person in effigy is an expression of art and considered free, then the hanging of any person in effigy must also be considered free. Justice is supposed to be equal and blind.
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