Minneapolis Hate Crime Hotline a Recipe for Crackdown on Free Speech

The ultra-liberal city of Minneapolis, Minnesota has proudly announced that they have set up a “hate crime hotline” for those who believe that they have been victimized by intolerance to get help.

The city states that the hotline is a service for those seeking to report “harassing behaviors motivated by prejudice” although there is little to define exactly what these behaviors constitute.

With the radical left targeting ordinary law-abiding Americans who happened to vote for and now support President Donald Trump, this hotline would seem to have the potential to be abused to rat out anyone with the wrong bumper sticker or who is wearing a red hat.

It’s difficult to see how the hate crime hotline is compatible with the right to freedom of speech. The police are already there to deal with real and serious problems but this crosses a dangerous line into thought crime.

According to the Minneapolis Star-Tribune “Minneapolis launches hate-crime hot line”:

The city of Minneapolis has set up a hot line for residents to report hate-crime incidents and other acts of intolerance.

The service, operated through the city’s 311 help line, is aimed to aid targets of any “harassing behaviors motivated by prejudice,” according to a city news release issued on Monday.

The announcement comes amid signs of a recent surge of such incidents affecting Muslims and Jews across the country, many of which go unreported.

“Since the general election, many of us have experienced, witnessed firsthand or heard of actions of: racism, xenophobia, sexism and bigotry directed at people here and in cities across the United States,” Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights Director Velma Korbel wrote in a statement posted on the city’s website. “In no uncertain terms, hate-motivated speech and actions have no place in Minneapolis nor will they be tolerated.”

The City Council last fall passed a resolution condemning violence and hate speech against Muslims.

Last year the Minneapolis City Council passed a resolution condemning hate speech against Muslims but as that occurred in November right after the election, it would appear to have been more of a political statement against Trump than out of concern for the oppressed Muslims.

The city is also encouraging alleged victims to also contact the Department of Justice to snitch on anyone who is deemed to be offensive.

This is the latest example of a dangerous and ant-American form of leftist totalitarianism that has been sweeping the land ever since Trump’s election.

Given the First Amendment issues it’s hard to see this not eventually being challenged in court and the sooner the better.