Free Speech In Europe: Keep Bob Dylan Off Of This List

Bob Dylan is being sued for "racist" remarks in France, which is the latest high-profile fiasco in Europe's approach to addressing offensive and hurtful speech through criminalization and endless lawsuits.

Criminalizing speech does little to curtail offensive remarks, puts a lot of pressure on people to self-sensor, and pulls a lot of government attention (and resources) away from the real problem: racist and bias-motivated violence. Of course, only a tiny fraction of offensive speech in Europe actually leads to fines, and there's only been a handful of prison sentences. Their existence is nevertheless worrying. Here are some recent examples (each paired with a Dylan tune) of how the Europeans just don't get it when it comes to free speech.

1. Twitter sued for $50 mil in France.

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Disregarding a French civil court ruling, Twitter initially refused to identify anonymous users who posted hateful and antisemitic messages. The Union of Jewish French Students (UEJF) then sued Twitter for roughly $50 million. Twitter offers one of the best platforms for people to oppose hateful speech by tweeting more and "overtaking" the hashtag with positive, smart and witty messages. Imagine the implications for this French civil court order in a country like Belarus or Saudi Arabia? Should the company also reveal the identities of anonymous users who hate their government officials? In July 2013, Twitter agreed to turn over some information on its users to the French authorities. Question is, was this really the best route of addressing antisemitic hate speech online?

In Dylan's words: "It’s not dark yet, but it’s getting there."

2. Twitter (again) sued (again) in France (again).

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An anti-gay hashtag that trended on French Twitter led to another lawsuit against the social media company in August 2013. Unlike the lawsuit over personal info about the antisemitic users, this time activists threatened legal action in California, where Twitter is guaranteed to win each legal challenge over a user's right to free speech. Thankfully, activists have also launched a countertwittack using the same hashtag to post messages in support of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Way to go--yet did we really need a lawsuit to go along with this effort?

In Dylan's words: "We’re gonna do what the law should do."

3. Poland accuses its biggest pop starlet of blasphemy.

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In 2010, Polish prosecutors charged pop singer Doda for going on TV and admitting she believed more in dinosaurs than in the Bible, which according to her was written by people who "drank too much wine and smoked herbal cigarettes." Though she avoided the maximum two-year sentence for blasphemous speech, Doda lost in the courtroom and paid a 5,000 złoty fine (~1,600 USD). Doda avoided jail time, yet being sent to prison for blasphemy remains a possibility in Europe.

In Russia, Pussy Riot weren't so lucky and are still serving their two-year sentences for what was essentially a blasphemous act. In countries like Pakistan, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, accusations of blasphemy often spark deadly riots against religious minorities, including Christians and minority Muslim groups. Blasphemy laws fuel hatred and violence, they don't protect anyone's feelings.

In Dylan's words: "Leave her alone, God damn you, get out."

4. Britain jails a Facebook user "for his own safety."

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Twenty-year-old Matthew Woods was arrested by U.K. authorities for posting offensive and classless comments about an abducted 5-year-old girl in 2012. True, Woods' offensive comments included sexually aggressive and suggestive references, attracting a legion of supportive and equally derogatory replies. But was there nothing more useful for the government to do than spend countless hours by going after this guy Woods? If his words make him a criminal, what should be done about those who "liked" or commented on his posts? And the million-dollar question: should there be a button on Facebook that sends you to jail directly if a certain number of "pokes" is reached?

In Dylan's words, "You’re an idiot, babe."

5. Spain prosecutes anti-king speech.

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In 2005, a Basque radical was sentenced to a year in prison for saying the King of Spain was "in charge of torturers." Arnaldo Otegi is spokesman for the banned Basque nationalist party Batasuna, and he may very well be a dangerous man. But sentencing him for slandering the King is like taking down Al Capone on tax evasion. I know very little about the King of Spain and certainly wish him all the best, yet after reading of this case I'm growing in suspicion that the King may very well be in charge of torturers.

In Dylan's words, "And Louie the King said let me think for a minute son."

6. Germany fines a racist grandma.

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A 74-year-old woman was fined earlier this year for her role in an anti-Muslim protest in Munich, Germany. Marie Frank is a tireless advocate against the fundamental rights of Muslims, like their right to build a place of worship in accordance with German laws and the constitution. She is an old woman who went to a xenophobic protest and held a classless sign. But why give her a social media boost for this, Germany? Couldn't you just ignore the old lady?

In Dylan's words, "It’s alright, Ma, I’m only sighing."

7. Bureaucrats everywhere still don't know how to react to cartoons.

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Remember the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad? The New York Times remembers them well, having run 81 articles about the controversy. The cartoons were extremely offensive to more than a billion people across the globe. Another billion plus thought they weren't offensive enough to be banned. We'll never know if there was even a thousand people in the whole universe who found the cartoons funny.

Now, consider the case of one Denis Leroy, a French cartoonist who reacted to the September 11th attack by running a cartoon in a Basque weekly newspaper (what do you think the circulation was before Leroy's court case?) with a caption that reads, “We have all dreamt of it. ... Hamas did it.” Leroy was quickly fined for his crime but took his case to the European Court of Human Rights where he - wait for it! - lost.

So anti-Muslim blasphemy is okay but tasteless anti-Americanism with an antisemitic slant is not. Is it even possible to find a judge whom we could trust with producing consistent rulings on all these speech-related cases? And could we produce a standard on this that satisfies most affected communities and individuals? The choice is clear: either ban all or neither. Either declare all speech an attempt to "contribute to the debate" or end all debates about everything.

In Dylan's words, "All these prophets so good and gone."

Remember, Europe: the best way to deal with offensive speech by public figures is to let their South Park characters explain themselves.

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It's either this way, or banning South Park, et. al., altogether. These are the only two real policy approaches for hate speech: either we let it rip or we close down the joint, err, twitter. Then Facebook. Then maybe BuzzFeed, too.

Don't underestimate the power of ignoring someone's offensive speech, Europe.

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Are you with Grumpy on this, dear old Europe?

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Or are you with America?

0.tqn.com / Via Norman Rockwell / Freedom of Speech

France, prosecuting this man will prove him right.

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