Oberlin's President Says No

cobrat
Sat, 23 Jan 2016 22:44:39 +0000

The Supreme Court, in Snyder v. Phelps, upheld our constitutional right to brandish signs that read “God hates fags” or “God hates America” at a gay soldier’s funeral, so I think it unlikely that substituting a different epithet (perhaps a common variation of “Negro”) would render similar speech unconstitutional. Then again, there’s a reason I’m not a Supreme Court justice.

There’s a major difference between organized protesters who are widely unpopular and otherwise acting peacefully and someone yelling a racial epithet on a street in a threatening manner to someone minding his/her own business in an area where racist attitudes are strong within a critical mass of the populace…including some who may be in positions of power in the local government and LEO agencies*.

Mentioning this because several Philly area friends who grew up in or are familiar with the areas around Swat have mentioned this is a known serious issue in that and other areas around the Philly area. And from what I gathered from my 80's era Swat graduate client and friend, seems like not much has changed from when he was an undergrad in the area.