Description

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Most modern democracies punish hate speech. Less freedom for some, they claim, guarantees greater freedom for others. Heinze rejects that approach, arguing that democracies have better ways of combatting violence and discrimination against vulnerable groups without having to censor speakers. Critiquing dominant free speech theories, Heinze explains that free expression must be safeguarded not just as an individual right, but as an essential attribute of democratic citizenship. The book challenges contemporary state regulation of public discourse by promoting a stronger theory of what democracy is and what it demands. Examining US, European, and international approaches, Heinze offers a new vision of free speech within Western democracies.

About the Author

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Eric Heinze, Professor of Law and Humanities, Queen Mary, University of London Eric Heinze (Maitrise, Paris; JD, Harvard; PhD Leiden), a former Fulbright, DAAD and Chateaubriand fellow, is Professor of Law and Humanities at Queen Mary, University London. He has worked with the International Commission of Jurists and the UN Sub-Commission on Human Rights, and on private litigation before the United Nations Administrative Tribunal in New York. He is a member of the Bars of New York and Massachusetts, and has advised NGOs on human rights, including Liberty, Amnesty International and the Media Diversity Institute.