Hunter
10/27/23
Instances of hate speech, including antisemitism and racism, made during a public comment section of the October 17th Iowa City Council meeting has prompted a statement from the city’s Human Rights Commission.
Two days after the meeting, the City Manager’s Office released a statement, saying that although free speech is a constitutional right, the city denounced what the statement called “hateful and ignorant rhetoric” and condemned actions and words that intend to degrade and divide. However, they did not indicate that they would take measures to prevent the council from being subjected to those comments in the future.
Thursday, the city’s Human Rights Commission released their own statement on the increase of hate speech.
Part of the statement reads: “We are currently witnessing a torrential amount of misinformation and polarizing commentary that fuels Islamophobia and antisemitism. We must reject forces that would seek to divide our community and turn instead to compassion, shared humanity, and a continued belief that we can create a just and peaceful Iowa City.”
The HRC adds in the statement that they reject all forms of identity-based hate speech, antisemitism, Islamophobia, and xenophobia, saying that communities are made better by diverse inclusion of all identities.
The statement includes links to online bystander intervention trainings the public can access.
https://righttobe.org/trainings/bystander-intervention-to-stop-antisemitic-harassment/
https://righttobe.org/trainings/bystander-intervention-in-public-spaces-training/