Nearly one quarter of the world’s population uses the internet and it is has become the prime means of communication and marketing around the world. I, for example, am able to easily share the details of my daily life with my friends and family in California, the United Kingdom, Germany and Taiwan in the blink of an eye. Unfortunately, this fantastic technology that unites us can be used just as easily to spread hatred.
In fact, as the World Wide Web has expanded, so have hate based websites. In 2007, there were 7000 sites, 8000 sites were identified in 2008. This year, some 10,000 websites advocating hate and terrorism have been identified.
More troubling is the existence of online games that perpetuate stereotypes and encourage violence. Such games are bright, colorful cartoons designed to appeal to children. Games like Border Patrol, the objective of which is to “keep them out at any cost”, are hosted or reviewed on mainstream gaming sites such as eBaum’s World. To a child, they seem like harmless fun; in reality they plant a sinister message in impressionable minds.
The use of technology goes beyond the World Wide Web. In 2008, Kenyans were bombarded with text messages encouraging them to participate in tribal attacks which lead to immediate, widespread violence against certain ethnic groups in the country. Last month, the Oklahoman reported that gangs in Oklahoma City and Tulsa have started using cell phones and text messaging to conduct criminal activities in addition to using Facebook and YouTube to recruit members as young as seven years old.
Our constitution guarantees our right to freedom of speech while other countries, such as Germany and the United Kingdom, have criminalized hate speech. It’s unlikely we can pass similar laws in this country, so what can we do to prevent the proliferation of hate? We can use the same tools to share messages of tolerance and compassion. In other words, spread the love, not the hate.
What Triggered Major Hasan’s Massacre at Fort Hood?
How could Major Hasan have turned against his own colleagues in the army? Was this terrorism? A hate crime against non-Muslims? The act of a crazy man? All of the preceding? None of them? WHY did he do it?
These questions continue today, analyzed, brainstormed, and debated by a wide variety of people.
Chances are that Major Hasan’s actions were due to a combination of deep motives that enraged him. But the actual trigger for the violence is becoming more clear as the evidence comes out and we are allowed to analyze it for ourselves.
The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, for example, asks whether Major Hasan was motivated by sexual frustration. They note that he, like some of the 9/11 hijackers, went to strip clubs before his violent rampage. With this question, they begin to approach what triggered his rampage, but they don’t actually get it.
Essentially, Major Hasan has the same motivations as a homophobe who commits a hate crime against a gay person. In 1996, the Journal of Abnormal Psychology published a breakthrough study that showed, for the first time, that homophobic men have some level of homosexual arousal. This has been anecdotal for a long time … that homophobes are often motivated to commit violence against gay men because they, themselves, have same-sex attraction, but social factors repress their ability to express that attraction, so they, like all of us, try to construct a world around them that makes them feel more comfortable. The thinking goes that by eliminating the physical presence of gay people, homophobes A) do not have to be continuously reminded of what they themselves cannot have, and B) will not be tempted to step outside of their social “box” and explore behaviors they crave, but are deemed unacceptable and even sinful. Basically, if it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind.
Similar motives likely come into play with Major Hasan. I believe that Major Hasan was frustrated by cultural behaviors allowed in western societies that did not fit in with his strict religious views. He experienced temptation around him, but felt guilty participating in it. (One thing I have come to realize is that some people deal with guilt through hostility. They don’t know how to cope with guilt so they resent whatever causes it rather than work through the issues themselves.)
This explanation also provides insight as to why Major Hasan would be in contact with militant Islamists who hate the USA … not because he was a pawn doing their bidding, but because they reinforced the restrictive socio-religious box in which he felt the need to live, and gave him the internal strength to resist the enticement to participate in what Hasan viewed as sinful, westernized behavior … behavior he nevertheless desired.
Why did Major Hasan go to strip clubs? Because he was horny and wanted to be with women, but since he couldn’t let himself do it, he turned on the society that constantly tempted him and made him feel guilty for exploring those urges. Major Hasan needs to repress and control his internal urges for sex and perhaps other “decadent” behavior more readily allowed in the west by directly confronting the external society that cultivated them (and also to confront the external society that he felt perpetuated these values and behaviors abroad). This is why he turned violent. It’s almost as if he had a temper tantrum on steroids because he couldn’t allow himself to have what he truly wanted — he just couldn’t give himself permission for it. That level of internal conflict between what he wanted to do, and what he felt he was supposed to do, was too much to bear so he snapped.
Undoubtedly there are some other factors that come into play, such as mental capacity, etc., which we will find out as more evidence is brought to light. However, I do feel certain that the immediate trigger for Major Hasan’s rampage was that he no longer could deal with his internal conflict between his strict Islamic values and the behaviors allowed by western society, so he turned against the society that he believed is responsible for creating the confusion and guilt — in this case, the USA.
This article was written by Matthew Rosenthal, PREVENT HATE’s president.
Much Needed Prescription: A Large Dose of Preventative Medicine
Prompted by bias, prejudice and misinformation, hate seems to be in evidence anywhere and everywhere we look; and, its pervasiveness is causing an epidemic of violence that seems to be growing in intensity day-by-day.
People, who disagree with one another, are screaming and yelling at one another; they have forsaken civility and are shouting obscenities while threatening to bodily harm each other.
Extremists – driven by rage – are acting out their anger, fear, frustration and suspicion; they are taking matters into their own hands and are wantonly snuffing out the lives of innocent victims on school campuses, in once quiet neighborhoods and even on supposedly secure military bases.
The by-product of all this is manifold: angst is running rampant; stereotyping is causing individuals and groups to pull away rather than to grow closer together; societal partnerships are in jeopardy; the roots of our democracy are rotting away because of the presence of a torrent of toxic words and actions.
What steps can we take to rid our communities of this hate-infested cancer before it is too late?
During my many years as a social justice activist, I have found that people who know one another – even those who have well defined disagreements – cannot and do not allow hostility to reign supreme; rather, they find ways to resolve those problems, which are soluble, and to live with those issues that have no lasting solutions.
Therefore, especially during these times, which are ripe with stress for a number of obvious reasons, each and all of us must invest time and energy to find the means to become familiar with those who are “strangers among us;” this can only happen when we exit our comfort zones, enter and sustain dialogues with folks with whom we have “differences,” and – together with them – help to build “communities” in which there are not just like-minded stakeholders.
A number of examples come to mind, but – for the sake of brevity – I want to share with you some of the direct benefits derived in the midst of our protracted Muslim-Jewish Dialogue in which a number of Los Angeles clergy and secular leaders have been participated through the years:
A. We have nurtured friendships that are unconditional.
B. We have found effective ways to avoid becoming entangled in Middle East- related crises.
C. We have learned from one another about each people’s belief systems and folk-ways.
D. We have drawn close to one another to offer solace during moments of torment and to celebrate high moments of human achievement.
E. We have focused on responding to local needs – whether or not they affect any or all of us.
In essence, when we are accustomed to talking candidly with someone, it is all but impossible for us to yell at that person – our knowledge about that individual, our shared experiences and our growing mutual respect become a safety net, which is impervious to all of the destructive and negative forces which would love to tear it to shreds.
Rabbi Freehling served for three decades as the Senior Rabbi of University Synagogue here in Los Angeles before serving for seven years as the Executive Director of the now defunct City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission; his current assignment is Deputy Chief of Staff for Field Operations in the Sixth City Council District.
Human Trafficking Online Training Opportunity
As a member of Rescue and Restore, PREVENT HATE is pleased to announce the following.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is hosting a series of free, online WebEx training sessions on a variety of topics related to human trafficking. The training session on Thursday, November 19, will focus on “Leveraging Resources to Serve Victims of Human Trafficking” and address the following:
- Engaging Non-Traditional Community Partners in Assisting Victims of Trafficking
- Leveraging Ethnic and Community Resources
- Leveraging Federal Resources and Public Benefits to Maximize In-House Programs
- Fostering Self-Sufficiency Among Clients
Presenter
♦ Chancee Martorell, Executive Director of Thai Community Development Center, Los Angeles, California
In 1994, Mrs. Martorell founded the Thai Community Development Center in Los Angeles, California, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of Thai immigrants through services that promote cultural adjustment and economic self-sufficiency. Mrs. Martorell is known most notably for her work on several major human rights cases in the past decade involving over 400 Thai labor trafficking victims in the United States and for her advocacy on behalf of the victims.
How to Register:
To register for the Thursday, November 19th, 2:00 p.m. (Eastern Time) training session, please click on the link below (or place it into your Internet browser):
https://mman.webex.com/mman/j.php?ED=101067452&RG=1&UID=68236602
Space is limited to 150 participants on a first-come, first-served basis. Multiple participants from an organization are encouraged to register one individual for the session; participants can view the training through one computer and a speaker phone.
For those of you not familiar with WebEx trainings, all you need is access to a computer, the Internet, and your phone.
After you register, the WebEx system will send you a confirmation e-mail with login information for both the web and the teleconference portions. Please save the confirmation email because it includes the following information:
- Toll-free phone number and participant passcode for the audio portion of the training session; and
- Web site link and passcode (same as the phone passcode) so you can view the PowerPoint (ppt) presentation as it is being presented. The ppt will advance automatically during the training session.
As part of the WebEx session, you can ask the presenter questions. Once on the call, the technician will guide you on how to ask questions orally. The speaker will answer questions during the last 15 minutes of the presentation.
PREVENT HATE Invited to Speak at Woodstock Celebration
Matt Rosenthal, PREVENT HATE’s president, has been asked to be a keynote speaker at the west coast’s fortieth anniversary of Woodstock. The original Woodstock’s message was about peace and love — changing one’s attitudes. 40 years later, we need a modern, updated message about changing one’s behavior — prevent hate!
Unfortunately, due to logistics, Matt will not be able to attend, nor will any of our associates or board members. However, PREVENT HATE hopes the event is a great success by promoting love and preventing hate.
Update on PREVENT HATE’s International Work
PREVENT HATE has been busy! We are in the process of bringing some more speakers to Los Angeles area schools to inspire at-risk youth to overcome hate and violence and to dedicate themselves to make a positive contribution to society. In addition, we will soon begin working with one local high school to create a blog for students across Los Angeles where they can inspire others to get involved with projects that enhance their communities.
Internationally, we currently are having constructive dialogue with the First Lady of Zambia and the Changzhou Disabled Persons’ Federation in China about working with them cooperatively to develop strategic partners, resources, and training programs that could elevate the living conditions of their people. As always, PREVENT HATE aims to foster friendship and productive relations across ethnic and cultural lines whenever possible.
Stay tuned for updates …
We Can’t Just Wish It Away, So Let’s Get Busy!
It’s obvious that hate is an ever-present reality in our lives. There are moments when it is profoundly all around us; at other times, it seems to recede like the tide. But, it never simply disappears.
So, since we can’t just wish it away, what can we do to minimize its presence and its reduce its influence on the society in which we live?
Here are but some of my responses to that question:
1. Whenever and where ever spewers of hate attempt to take center stage, they need to be rationally challenged; inasmuch as they depend on spreading falsehoods, each of their lies must be cooly refuted.
2. Knowing that hate springs forth in the midst of despair, always working in concert with others whom we trust, ours is a responsibility to improve economic and social conditions so that the hatemonger’s base of operations and power to control events are as limited as possible.
3. Children and adults can be prepared to confront hate; ours is the obligation to sensitize them to reality and to provide them with the skills and mind-set which will allow them to be minimally damaged when and if they become targets of those who would degrade and dehumanize them.
4. If we find ourselves falling prey to stereotypical thinking, not paying attention to an individual’s attributes, and lumping that person into some imagined “whole” via thinking in terms of generalities, it’s necessary that we be aware of such short-sightedness on our part and disallow it in every aspect of our thoughts and actions.
The person who spreads hate in our society wishes to drive us apart from one another, to plant poisonous seeds of mistrust amongst us, to wrest control from those whom we have placed in authority, to use misinformation to gain the upper hand, and to win an ultimate victory over everything we hold dear.
We have all the means necessary to deny them that success; we can ill-afford to wait for sometime else and/or someone else to take up this task, because there’s too much at stake for us to be unconcerned and uninvolved!
By the way, as we take all of this into account, I believe that it’s absolutely essential that we also not permit hate to make us hysterical; we can only become victimized by it when and if we permit that to happen – not by the hands of others but all by ourselves…
This is the first post by Rabbi Allen I. Freehling
He served for three decades as the Senior Rabbi of University Synagogue here in Los Angeles before serving for seven years as the Executive Director of the now defunct City of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission; his current assignment is Deputy Chief of Staff for Field Operations in the Sixth City Council District.
Transcript of PREVENT HATE Twitter Chat with U.S. Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity
PREVENT HATE is beginning to offer the general public access to various leaders, movers, and shakers globally in order for all of you to gain additional insight as to what is happening throughout the world, and how you can get involved making your own communities better for all its inhabitants. Part of this is through our Twitter account by hosting chats with various officials so that you can make your voices heard, and have your questions answered.
On September 15, 2009, PREVENT HATE hosted a Twitter chat with John Trasviña, the United States Assistant Secretary of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity. The full transcript of the chat is as follows.
10:01 AM We are beginning our chat with the US Asst. of Fair Housing, John Trasvina. Welcome Assistant Secretary!
10:04 AM Q1) Section 3 requires low income people to get job training, but what about about people with disabilities who can’t work?
10:06 AM A1) Just b/c someone has a disability does not disqualify him/her from work and the point of Sec. 3 is to promote job options for low income
10:07 AM Not options … job opportunities for low income
10:18 AM @Najia7 Does your dept focus on green building/improve indoor air quality/saving energy/creating jobs with #SOLAR public housing?
10:19 AM in reply to Najia7 We focus on sustainable communities. Some focus is on energy innovation w/in home and making sure transportation and housing are in synch
10:22 AM 61% of ppl who had subprime mortgages qualified for traditional loans and did not have to be in the situation they now find themselves in
10:22 AM Go to makinghomeaffordable.gov for more info.
10:24 AM We all have a stake & role in doing that. I will be speaking to a group later this wk – Building One America – which revitalizes communities
10:33 AM Our off. enforces Sec. 504 of Rehab Act & 1988’s Fair Housing amendments, which ensures access to units of 4+ unit buildings built after ‘91
10:36 AM Q6) The LA Riots of 1991 were based on bad lending, by allowing immigrants to get loans more easily than locals. Any comment?
10:38 AM A6) I disagree with the premise that this is what happened. African-Americans and immigrants both have been victimized by predatory lending
10:39 AM Q7) Does preventing discrimination based on sex include people who have changed their sex medically?
10:42 AM Nobody should have to hide their identity in USA
10:43 AM Q8) What would it take to have sexual orientation to be covered as a category that cannot be discriminated against?
10:45 AM Q9) Why don’t people have to speak English to get federal funds and public housing?
10:48 AM Q10) Does your office work with community groups to provide services and programs in public housing?
10:49 AM A10) We focus on fair housing. Yes we work with community grps and offer funding to prevent discrimination in housing
10:50 AM Q11) Does your office consider AIDS related discrimination as disability discrimination?
10:51 AM A11) AIDS discrimination may be considered discrimination against a disability according to the law
10:53 AM Q12) Have you seen an increase in people requesting public housing?
10:54 AM A12) For more information about this, please visit hud.gov/pih
10:56 AM After 41 years of law, housing discrimination still persists. I encourage people to check out hud.gov/fheo, or call 1-800-669-9777.
10:58 AM in reply to @NAMIMass Many thought the work was over in ‘88 when we expanded the Fair Housing law to protect ppl with disabilities but we need more work
10:59 AM And so is Matt Rosenthal of PREVENT HATE. Thank you! — End chat.
Make Music Not Hate
By now, just about everybody who has ever heard of MTV knows about what happened last Sunday 9/13 at the Video Music Awards – better known as the VMAs — when Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift’s speech to give a shout-out to Beyonce. There is a lot of blog talk about whether Kanye did what he did because he is prejudiced against white people. Many people are asking whether Kanye was motivated by racial differences since Taylor is white and Beyonce and Kanye are both black. But, what about how this incident suggests that sexism, which is too often prevalent in parts of the music industry and society-at-large, may have played a role? Since women are generally physically weaker than men, and their needs socially accepted as less important, the end result is that they often get pushed around. Although it is difficult to draw definite conclusions, one cannot help but wonder if this is what what we saw happen at Sunday’s VMAs.
Is there also a racial element to Kanye’s motives? Based upon some of his past comments, I think he could use some healing in that area; and since that is doable, let’s not give up on him. Let’s not hate Kanye.
I think there is something else we should talk about, which is a lack of appreciation for country music by many followers of hip hop — something we all know also occurs robustly in the reverse. This is a two-way street. Yet, where hip hop and country music are concerned, they are not just a combination of melody and harmony, but reflective of culture. Both are uniquely American, and yet, seem so disparate from each other. But who ever said somebody cannot like both hip hop and country music? Somehow it became a self-perpetuating part of how some people do things without even thinking about it. It feels natural to them to like only one or the other, but not both. To me, that makes as much sense as having to choose between Chinese food and Italian food. I love both. I don’t want to limit my choices, so why not do the same with music?
Music should bring people together, not divide them.
Kanye’s behavior at the VMAs presents us with an interesting opportunity. Rather than bemoan his behavior, scold him, and then go back to business as usual (and I do mean business), which is how things are usually done, let’s get proactive. Let’s prevent hate already. What we need is to bring lovers of hip hop and country music together in a way where they stop and say to each other, “You know what? I changed my mind about you. You’re cool!” We can do this. It’s not hard. It just takes leadership, creativity, and the will to do so.
It is no secret that social tensions in this country have increased this past year. People are polarizing more and more. Fear is high in a bad economy, which often manifests itself among racial lines. Tensions are up, and therefore, so too is domestic violence because when some men are upset, who do they take their problems out on? Family.
See how this works? The economy goes down, social tensions go up, people blame “the other” for their problems, and the result is that women get pushed around … and worse. Furthermore, when tensions go up, Americans take their problems out on each other. It’s comprehensive familial abuse. So, rather than blame the people who get caught up in tension and frustration, let’s actually do something that brings tangible results by using music as a tool for goodness. Let’s use Kanye’s behavior as a catalyst for a more cooperative future.
Think of what happened at the VMAs as manure, from which we could grow an amazing garden. The VMAs gave us an opportunity to encourage … persuade … insist that the hip hop and country music industries bring those who love their music together to bridge the gaps that divide too many of them. This work is crucial because of how these divisions play out in mainstream society.
If music is anything, it’s creative. It’s the ability to make something memorable out of nothing. We don’t need to despair because the music industry has the power to change people’s minds and hearts. Now that it is Woodstock’s fortieth anniversary, the time has come for us to make beautiful music together. The time is now to prevent hate.
Would you Like to Blog for PREVENT HATE?
Are you interested in making a difference in the world through blogging about relevant social issues? Do you have a lot to say, and are looking for a platform to say it?
If so, PREVENT HATE may be looking for you! We are now recruiting bloggers to engage the public in discussion about issues involving hate crimes, violence, genocide, war, conflict, domestic violence … you name it … as long as it fosters, or results, in hate, we are willing to discuss it, and offer solutions.
PREVENT HATE is a nonprofit organization with a global outreach headquartered in Los Angeles. We are a premier provider of customized programs and services that foster social development. We actively provide strategic resources and partners to struggling communities and individuals in order to diminish motives for conflict and violence.
PREVENT HATE does not merely identify social problems, but actively gets engaged whenever possible to solve them.
Our Witness Humanity program brings adversaries together, teaches them a curriculum in sustainable development, and then takes them to an area in need of urgent assistance where they work hand in hand healing the environment and providing “green”solutions to communities-in-need.
Our Genocide Survivors Engaging At-Risk Youth program brings survivors of genocide, war crimes, and severe crimes against humanity to schools with high populations of at-risk youth to provide the students with real-life role models who understand the destructive properties of hate, and who dedicate themselves to make a positive contribution to society even after experiencing the worst forms of adversity. These are just two examples of what we do.
PREVENT HATE offers numerous other innovative programs and services, which you can view on our website. We are now looking to build our blog into the internet’s foremost site for people to come and learn about problematic conflicts in the world, as well as best practices to solve them, promote healing, and of course, to prevent hate! If you would like to become a PREVENT HATE blogger and social media expert, contact us.
This is a volunteer opportunity to begin with. For more information about PREVENT HATE, visit us online at:
www.preventhate.org
www.twitter.com/preventhate
www.myspace.com/preventhate
Contact us a communications@preventhate.org to express your interest!
We look forward to hearing from you!
PREVENT HATE!
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