Dressing up like an Orthodox Jew and giving a Nazi salute while shouting “Heil Israel” is contemptible; but prosecuting that individual for violating “hate crimes” laws [link found on Little Green Footballs] is authoritarian and unworthy of the free society France purports to be. France’s record in combatting anti-Semitic violence was weak until recently, but its government shouldn’t try to redeem itself by stifling political speech, even speech that is offensive and insulting. [Note: Somehow, I originally misread this story as coming from Quebec, and I’ve edited the post to correct my error.]
Comments are closed.