Free Speech Now Very Costly
Atlanta Hawks GM Danny Ferry was bought out of his contract after serving an indefinite 10 month suspension. Ferry was initially suspended for making what many considered to be racial comments about NBA veteran Luol Ding who was being considered by the Hawks as a free agent signee. During a conference call Ferry described Ding by stating "He's got a lot of African in him". and also that "he's the kind of guy who has a nice store out front, but sell you counterfeit stuff out the back". After Ferry's comments were leaked to the public he was immediately placed on indefinite suspension. We have seemed to have reached a new normal whereby non-whites will lose their jobs or are be forced to sell their business interest when they engage in unpopular speech. In the case of Donald Sterling, even in private.
The Ferry email was the fallout from an earlier scandal in which Hawks owner Bruce Levenson turned over his own controversial email to the NBA in light of the Sterling scandal. In that email, Levenson offered observations about the Hawks inability to attract white fans and how perhaps it might be related to their fear of blacks. Given the very heated and litigious Sterling issue the NBA moved swiftly to divest Levenson of his majority stake in the team. These are just a few incidents in what is becoming a very troubling trend. Last year Paula Dean suffered a major Public relations hit when a former employee alleged she made derogatory remarks about blacks-often using the N-word. Although these were just allegations, that didn't prevent the media onslaught which eventually led to the cancellation of her cooking show by the Food Network and millions of dollars in lost endorsements. Donald Trump sparked national outrage from the left when he said that Mexico was not sending "its best across the border' but instead "rapist and criminals" were streaming across the border. Several of Trumps business partners in corporate America ended their relationships with him. Including Macy's, Univision and the PGA.
Wrestling Icon Hulk Hogan has come under fire for a video tape whereby he appears to goes on N-bomb filled rant about his daughter Brook dating a black man. The WWE immediately terminated his contract and removed all references about Hogan from its website. Who could forget Former Seinfeld star Michael Richards 2007 N-word tirade directed at a group of hecklers. That incident effectively ruined his career. So here is where we are. People are fired or suffer devastating economic consequences, have television shows and endorsements canceled when for speech be it right or wrong is unacceptable to the left. Comments made by Hogan, or those alleged by Paula Dean are indeed unacceptable and should be condemned. However, neither of them can affect how you or I raise our children or if we succeed or fail in life. I do recognize the racist nature of Hogan's and Deen's remarks, however they should not be grouped with Trump's or Ferry's under the vague term "hate speech".
The goal of the civil rights movement was not to cleanse the society of all uncomfortable or even insulting language. It was meant to remove legal barriers to discrimination. The unholy alliance between the leftist media and the social justice mobocracy has instituted what is quickly becoming a fascist society. College campuses are well documented no free speech zones. Any point of view that disagrees with the left's narrative is labeled 'hate speech". If this trend continues , don't be surprised if America starts to resemble the Sylvester Stallone film Demolition man. Whereby vices and weapons are outlawed, human behavior is regulated and all public profanity is punishable by way of a citation issued from electronic monitors placed throughout public places. Don't laugh.
The Ferry email was the fallout from an earlier scandal in which Hawks owner Bruce Levenson turned over his own controversial email to the NBA in light of the Sterling scandal. In that email, Levenson offered observations about the Hawks inability to attract white fans and how perhaps it might be related to their fear of blacks. Given the very heated and litigious Sterling issue the NBA moved swiftly to divest Levenson of his majority stake in the team. These are just a few incidents in what is becoming a very troubling trend. Last year Paula Dean suffered a major Public relations hit when a former employee alleged she made derogatory remarks about blacks-often using the N-word. Although these were just allegations, that didn't prevent the media onslaught which eventually led to the cancellation of her cooking show by the Food Network and millions of dollars in lost endorsements. Donald Trump sparked national outrage from the left when he said that Mexico was not sending "its best across the border' but instead "rapist and criminals" were streaming across the border. Several of Trumps business partners in corporate America ended their relationships with him. Including Macy's, Univision and the PGA.
Wrestling Icon Hulk Hogan has come under fire for a video tape whereby he appears to goes on N-bomb filled rant about his daughter Brook dating a black man. The WWE immediately terminated his contract and removed all references about Hogan from its website. Who could forget Former Seinfeld star Michael Richards 2007 N-word tirade directed at a group of hecklers. That incident effectively ruined his career. So here is where we are. People are fired or suffer devastating economic consequences, have television shows and endorsements canceled when for speech be it right or wrong is unacceptable to the left. Comments made by Hogan, or those alleged by Paula Dean are indeed unacceptable and should be condemned. However, neither of them can affect how you or I raise our children or if we succeed or fail in life. I do recognize the racist nature of Hogan's and Deen's remarks, however they should not be grouped with Trump's or Ferry's under the vague term "hate speech".
The goal of the civil rights movement was not to cleanse the society of all uncomfortable or even insulting language. It was meant to remove legal barriers to discrimination. The unholy alliance between the leftist media and the social justice mobocracy has instituted what is quickly becoming a fascist society. College campuses are well documented no free speech zones. Any point of view that disagrees with the left's narrative is labeled 'hate speech". If this trend continues , don't be surprised if America starts to resemble the Sylvester Stallone film Demolition man. Whereby vices and weapons are outlawed, human behavior is regulated and all public profanity is punishable by way of a citation issued from electronic monitors placed throughout public places. Don't laugh.
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