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1992 U. Ill. L. Rev. 979 (1992)
Standing Guard for the P.C. Militia, or, Fighting Hatred and Indifference: Some Thoughts on Expressive Hate-Conduct and Political Correctness

handle is hein.journals/unilllr1992 and id is 989 raw text is: STANDING GUARD FOR THE P.C. MILITIA, OR, FIGHTING HATRED AND INDIFFERENCE: SOME THOUGHTS ON EXPRESSIVE HATE-CONDUCT AND POLITICAL CORRECTNESS Robin D. Barnes* I. INTRODUCTION On a recent visit to my hometown I ventured to a travelling amuse- ment park, the County Fair, where I enjoyed the games, food, and atmosphere. While awaiting the emergence of my young Asian foster daughter from an oscillating ride called the Rainbow, its brilliant and vivid colors served to strengthen my commitment to celebrating the diversity that I consciously seek to bring into my world. Adjacent to the ride was a glass booth housing the disc jockey for this particular amusement. One panel of the enclosure faced the viewing public and prominently displayed a Confederate flag. Upon closer inspection it turned out to be the Georgia State Flag, but those identifying marks were folded under and hidden from view. I promptly located the manager to register my protest, knowing all along that the First Amendment would rise from the ashes of my burning discontent, as it probably should, to protect public display of that symbol.' Associate Professor of Law, University of Connecticut School of Law. B.A., J.D., University of Buffalo Law School; LLM., University of Wisconsin Law School. These comments originally were presented before an audience that provided a built-in mecha- nism, the question and answer period, for clarification of the views expressed as well as a broader context for discussion that is difficult to capture in print. Therefore, I offer many thanks to those who offered comments on drafts of this speech in an effort to make it as clear and concise as possible within the constraints of necessary page limitations. Jim Stark, Sue-Ann Nazario, and Ted Shaw posed ques- tions and offered insight that proved valuable to the organization and production of a working draft. Jeremy Paul challenged me to take a stand with a brand of clarity and conviction lacking in all but the final version; I deeply appreciate his encouragement and support. My editor, Brad Johnson, exercised infinite patience and provided superb editorial comments. 1. See generally James Forman, Jr., Driving Dixie Down: Removing the Confederate Flag from Southern State Capitols, 101 YALE L.J. 505 (1992). The author makes a compelling argument under both First and Fourteenth Amendment Equal Protection analysis for removing Dixie from state flags. This particular form of government speech can be traced to invidious racial discrimination. Most notable is the resurgence of Dixie during the late Alabama Governor George Wallace's Segre- gation Forever Campaign; Dixie is reemerging, yet again, among Skinhead groups. At the numerous

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