I'm sorry. But I do think that accusing people of bigotry is very serious business.

[Smith_3]

Especially in times where the accuasation of something can be as harmful as the conviction of something.

I post this in response to previous discussions that IMO downplayed the seriousness of an accusation of bigotry. I agree of course that usually the actual bigotry of the REAL bigots is worse than when a non-bigoted person gets accused of being a bigot, but that doesn't mean that such an accusation is not serious business.

On an individual level, the accusation can mean the end of careers, political and otherwise.

On a more general level, it is even more worse if such accusations are made in order to provide cover for something.

As an example, I do think that hiring quotas of different kinds can sometimes make sense, but not everyone who stresses that they sometimes don't is automatically a bigot.

Moreover, if accusations of bigotry provide cover for a different kind of bigoty, I think this is dead serious. If one, for instance, is not able to criticize the actions of Israel against the Palestineans (and say what you will, there is a large number of things that a non-bigoted person can find wrong there) without being labeled an anti-semite, then the accusation of bigotry becomes a tool of war.

To be fair, the thread that sparked these thoughts was one about gay marriage, and to be honest, I cannot think of a non-bigoted reason anyone would oppose that.

But generally, I think people should be more careful of who they accuse of what. Maybe they will risk to lose someone who could have been supportive to their particular cause. If I am told over and over that I am a bigot if I don't agree with what group A is doing to group B, because there is a history of bad things being done to group A, then I might end up having a hard time to care about what was done to group A.

[hlthe2b]

1. Youj missed another bigotry accusing post that is up now...

unrelated to gay marriage.

I agree that this term should never be freely thrown around, but it seems to be the "tactic of choice" for some here, against those with whom they disagree.

[elocs]

3. It is a tactic of choice used by bullies.

In the 1950s it was "communist", the worst label possible then and used by the right. Today the politically correct smear word is "bigot" and it is casually used by the left to those who do not pass their litmus test or take their loyalty oath.

[sam sarrha]

2. definitions....: >>Links>

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bigot
Main Entry: big·ot
Pronunciation: \ˈbi-gət\
Function: noun
Etymology: French, hypocrite, bigot
Date: 1660
: a person obstinately or intolerantly devoted to his or her own opinions and prejudices ; especially : one who regards or treats the members of a group (as a racial or ethnic group) with hatred and intolerance

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bigotry
"snip...A bigot is a person who is intolerant of opinions, lifestyles or identities differing from his or her own, and bigotry is the corresponding attitude or mindset. Bigot is often used as a pejorative term to describe a person who is obstinately devoted to prejudices, especially when these views are either challenged, or proven to be false or not universally applicable or acceptable.

The exact origin of the word is unknown, but it may have come from the German bei and gott, or the English by God. William Camden wrote that the Normans were first called bigots, when their Duke Rollo, who when receiving Gisla, daughter of King Charles, in marriage, and with her the investiture of the dukedom, refused to kiss the king's foot in token of subjection - unless the king would hold it out for that specific purpose. When being urged to do it by those present, Rollo answered hastily "No, by God", whereupon the King, turning about, called him bigot, which then passed from him to his people...snip"

i dont think prejudiced people are going to suffer loss of career because someone on DU calls some ass hole a Bigot, bigots flock together and wear our insults as badges of honor.

[TahitiNut]

4. There's something self-contradictory in many accusations of bigotry.

When one individual accuses (even obliquely) another of some form of bigotry, knowing it will be taken as a grave insult, there's some degree of acknowledgment that the accused individual regards such an attitude as despicable ... and, in essence, is possessed of enough egalitarianism to eschew bigotry. To whatever degree this is the case, it betrays some degree of projection on the part of the accuser, imho.