On the day of the Presidential Inauguration a couple of weeks ago, there was a wave of protests and general chaos in Washington, DC. Some of these protesters committed acts of violence. One particular moment of violence that was caught on camera and subsequently made the news was Richard Spencer, an Alt-Right leader and white nationalist, getting punched in the face during an interview. This of course went viral, given the current significance Richard Spencer has in politics. When the attack took place, Richard Spencer was giving an interview when a protester ran up and hit him, and then ran off. The main significance of this event was the debate it sparked: Is it okay to punch a Nazi? Some people have been making the argument that Neo-Nazis and fascists have a belief system so abhorrent that it is justified, even necessary, to use physical violence against them, especially in the name of preventing them from spreading their ideas. Other people have been arguing that Nazis deserve the right to have their ideas heard just like everyone else.
The people who are arguing in favor of punching Nazis in the name of silencing them are wrong. I would go so far as to say that they are dangerous. Despite how you may feel about a person’s political beliefs or general character, violence is never justified. Just because someone doesn’t like Richard Spencer (by the way, I don’t like him either), doesn’t give them free reign to attack him. All beliefs and all speech need to be tolerated. All ideas need to be heard, because if we start condoning the silencing of certain people through force, it becomes a slippery slope. Also who exactly gets to be the arbiter of which ideas are permissible to be spoken, and which ones warrant getting assaulted for expressing? You may personally think that Spencer’s ideas are horrible, but obviously he disagrees, and the people who listen to him disagree. There is no logical way to establish where the line should be, since everyone’s opinion on which speech is dangerous varies. The only logical solution is to allow everyone to speak their mind, and the let the good ideas defeat the bad ones in a free open marketplace of ideas. If Richard Spencer’s beliefs are wrong, then people should let him demonstrate that by revealing them. By punching Richard Spencer in the face, the protester only served to make Spencer look good and gives legitimacy to his cause.
