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Posted By: Jamie

This is about limits. Every board, as a community, needs to have rules and regulations to create a safe environment. Hate speech, or speech that is racially or sexually inflammatory, is destructive in its contribution to the board. It is the responsibility of those who moderate the board to use their authority to control its behavior and create a safe environment for everyone.



Homophobic, sexist and racist ("natzis") slurs that provoke mental, emotional and physical intimidation are more than "politically incorrect" - they are unethical and violent in nature. As such, they are damaging to the best interests of the Network54 board and society as a whole.



Removal of those who refuse to comply to those standards is not only appropriate, it is vital. Failure to do so states that the moderator and board complicity accept those types of violent statements as legitimate forms of self-expression. They are not.



For those who might falsely believe that those types of statements should be accepted as "free speech", the argument is flawed. Violent speech only serves to negate free speech, as for free speech to exist in its true from, it must be liberated from the violence and oppression of hate speech.



I applaud those who have actively protested against the hate speech that has occurred on the board, and join them in their protest. I feel confident that should it continue, our moderators will take the appropriate actions to rectify the situation.