Cardin speaks out on Internet hate speech

November 17, 2008

WASHINGTON (JTA)—The co-chairman of the U.S. Helsinki Commission spoke out against hate speech on the Internet.

"If the diversity of the Internet’s content and its accessibility is one of its greatest strengths, then hate propaganda may be one of its greatest weaknesses," U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) said Monday at a news conference hosted by the Anti-Defamation League and International Network Against Cyber-Hate as part of a two-day Global Summit on Internet Hate Speech in Washington. "I applaud all efforts to explore what more we can be doing in this country and abroad to address that weakness and stem the spread of hate and develop action plans against all forms of discrimination.”

Cardin added that "moving forward on this will remain a top priority" of the commission in the next Congress.

The Helsinki Commission, also referred to as the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, is a U.S. government agency that monitors progress in the implementation of the 1975 Helsinki Accords on human rights.

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