Quote:
Originally posted by Sidd Finch
If someone starts beating up black people because he's trying to drive black people out of his neighborhood, I'm not sure that's an "old wrong."
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And even if there is an element of redressing old wrongs, so what. Doesn't the state have an interest in telling targets of hate crimes that old wrongs will no longer be tolerated? To take the most obvious example, a cross burning on a black family's lawn is a symbol of hate because it communicates to the family that there are people out there that hate the family. It is also a reminder -- and is placed there as a reminder -- that not so long ago, the government countenanced cross burning, to say nothing of lynching, as well as other types of murders and other forms of terrorism directed at blacks. Shouldn't the government be able to tell black families that its "past wrong" of ignoring or participating in such crimes is a thing of the past, and that the government is now on the family's side?
