Racism vs. Prejudice Part 2

Discussing racism vs. prejudice is important because it's common to associate them as similar. While true, this doesn't highlight the fundamental difference. Physical and mental are not the same thing.

Arresting someone for, say, assault and battery seems justifiable, because this violates the harm principle. But arresting someone for thinking about it denies an individual the basic right of free thought, an idea many totalitarian governments are founded on.

I loathe racism with a passion, but it seems that problems like this only fester when physical coercion comes into play.

Why? They simply want attention.

Bigots like Jerry Falwell and David Duke are going to spew hate whether it's legal or not. But when attempts are made to control thinking, it only rouses those types of people to unite and this easily leads to demonstration. Lynching is rightly illegal, because it infringes on someone elses rights, but trying to deny someone to think can only eventually lead to physical consequences.

Rather, use education and experience to fix these problems. It's the only effective way.

Racism = Preference
Prejudice = Abomination