Words That Wound: Critical Race Theory, Assaultive Speech, And The First Amendment (New perspectives on law, culture, and society)

In this book, the authors, all legal scholars from the tradition of critical race theory start from the experience of injury from racist hate speech and develop a theory of the first amendment that recognizes such injuries. In their critique of'first amendment orthodoxy', the authors argue that only a history of racism can explain why defamation, invasion of privacy and fraud are exempt from free-speech guarantees but racist verbal assault is not. Cover 1 Half Title 2 Title 4 Copyright 5 Contents 8 1 Introduction 10 What Is Critical Race Theory? 12 Critical Race Scholars Enter the First Amendment Debate 16 Building Theory Through Reflection on Action 19 Toward a Postcolonial University: Reflections on the Right to Be Racist 22 2 Public Response to Racist Speech: Considering the Victim’s Story 26 Outsider Jurisprudence 27 Racist Hate Messages: The Victim’s Story 29 International Law of Human Rights: The Emerging Acceptance of the Victim’s Story 35 U.S. Protection of Racist Hate Propaganda: The Civil Libertarian’s Story 40 Narrow Application and Protection of First Amendment Values 44 Hard Cases 47 The Unintended Story: The Meaning of Legal Protection of Racist Hate Messages 56 Conclusion 59 3 If He Hollers Let Him Go: Regulating Racist Speech on Campus 62 Brown v. Board of Education: A Case About Regulating Racist Speech 68 Racist Speech as the Functional Equivalent of Fighting Words 75 Knowing the Injury and Striking the Balance: Understanding What Is at Stake in Racist Speech Cases 80 “Which Side Are (We) On?” 91 Epilogue 96 4 Words That Wound: A Tort Action for Racial Insults, Epithets, and Name Calling 98 Psychological, Sociological, and Political Effects of Racial Insults 99 Legal Protection from Racial Insults 105 Elements of the Cause of Action 118 Conclusion 119 5 Beyond Racism and Misogyny: Black Feminism and 2 Live Crew 120 An Examination of Intersectionality 122 Representational Intersectionality and Images That Wound 126 Addressing the Intersectionalities in the 2 Live Crew Controversy 129 6 Epilogue: Burning Crosses and the R.A.V. Case 142 Notes 146 Bibliography 156 About the Book and Authors 162 Index 164 Words, like sticks and stones, can assault; they can injure; they can exclude. In this important book, four prominent legal scholars from the tradition of critical race theory draw on the experience of injury from racist hate speech to develop a first amendment interpretation that recognizes such injuries. In their critique of "first amendment orthodoxy," the authors argue that only a history of racism can explain why defamation, invasion of privacy, and fraud are exempt from free-speech guarantees while racist and sexist verbal assaults are not. The rising tide of verbal violence on college campuses has increased the intensity of the "hate speech" debate. This book demonstrates how critical race theory can be brought to bear against both conservative and liberal ideology to motivate a responsible regulation of hate speech. The impact of feminist theory is also evident throughout. The authors have provided a rare and powerful example of the application of critical theory to a real-life problem. This timely and necessary book will be essential reading for those experiencing the conflicts of free-speech issues on campus--students, faculty, administrators, and legislators--as well as for scholars of jurisprudence. It will also be a valuable classroom tool for teachers in political science, sociology, law, education, ethnic studies, and women's studies Introduction / Charles R. Lawrence Iii [and Others] -- Public Response To Racist Speech : Considering The Victim's Story / Mari J. Matsuda -- If He Hollers Let Him Go : Regulating Racist Speech On Campus / Charles R. Lawrence Iii -- Words That Wound : A Tort Action For Racial Insults, Epithets, And Name Calling / Richard Delgado -- Beyond Racism And Misogyny : Black Feminism And 2 Live Crew / Kimberlè Williams Crenshaw -- Epilogue : Burning Crosses And The R.a.v. Case / Mari J. Matsuda And Charles R. Lawrence Iii. Mari J. Matsuda ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 147-151) And Index.