Criminalising Hate Speech: A Comparative Study

The chapters explain national legislation and case law, tracking the challenges posed by growing extremism and social polarisation, which is now more acute than ever before in our age of electronic media. The authors also align these national developments with norms and procedures of leading international human rights bodies such as the UN Committee on Racial Discrimination, the UN Human Rights Committee, and the European Court of Human Rights. This collection will be invaluable for beginners, as no prior knowledge is required. At the same time, given the chapters’ depth and breadth, it will supply a research tool for advanced scholars, lecturers, and researchers in the areas of free speech, human rights, comparative law, criminal law, constitutional law, and political theory, as well as media and communications studies.

Eric Heinze is Professor of Law and Humanities at Queen Mary University of London. He is currently a Trustee of the London-based Media Diversity Institute, and recently served as General Rapporteur on the Criminalisation of Hate Speech for the Académie Internationale de Droit Comparé.