Please or to access all these features

Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

What's more important, freedom of expression or women's rights?

30 replies

AWholeLottaNosy · 18/11/2014 00:18

Personally I have no conflict about this. Anyone who attempts to influence or indoctrinate men into thinking it's ok to use sexual violence against women needs silencing and banning and I'm proud that recent online petitions have been effective in silencing misogynists who want to encourage other men to abuse us. However, there are people who would disagree...

www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/nov/17/hashtag-hate-trap-censorship-freedom-expression-dapper-laughs-julien-blanc

OP posts:
AWholeLottaNosy · 18/11/2014 08:10

Cos it's just 'banter', innit?

OP posts:
MyEmpireOfDirt · 18/11/2014 07:52

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ChunkyPickle · 18/11/2014 07:51

Freedom of expression is very important, perhaps we should allow that bloke into speak - on the understanding that his incitement to violence which is clearly spelled out on his website means that he is prosecuted for every act of violence done against women by a man who has watched him, and that every woman working in or near that theatre is compensated for a hostile work environment created by his incitement to abuse women.

Freedom of expression is not a freedom from the consequences of your own actions

MyEmpireOfDirt · 18/11/2014 07:50

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

prashad · 18/11/2014 02:11

I don't think censorship is the way to do things. That is, I think it would be wrong to make laws that would prevent the expression of certain views (even sexist or misogynistic ones).

There is a lot of art throughout history that we value today that would never have existed if the common consensus of the day had been allowed to suppress things they didn't agree with.

I think it is better to leave these things exist, but to publicise what is wrong with them... as has happened with the 'Dapper Laughs' thing. That's not censorship though, that's just activism. It's been gotten rid of without being banned, and it's banning that I'm against.

I believe that freedom of expression is important, but exposing nonsense like this is effective; the 'comedian' behind Dapper Laughs has had to bin the character and I suspect his whole career is over because of the activism of those opposed to it.

Perhaps if we censor things like this, people in the future will forget how terrible and dangerous ideas can be. Don't we need 'Mein Kampf' to remain in print so that we don't forget it's legacy?

Swipe left for the next trending thread