Atrocity Speech Law

Hate speech is widely considered a precondition for mass atrocity. Since World War II a large body of case law has interpreted the key offenses criminalizing such discourse: (1) incitement to genocide; and (2) persecution as a crime against humanity. But the law has developed in a fragmented manner. Surprisingly, no volume has furnished a comprehensive analysis of the entire jurisprudential output and the relation of each of its parts to one another and to the whole. Atrocity Speech Law fills this gap and provides needed perspective for courts, government officials, and scholars. Part 1, “Foundation,” explores the historical relationship between speech and atrocity and the foundations of the current legal framework. Part 2, “Fragmentation,” details the discrepancies and deficiencies within that framework. Part 3, “Fruition,” proposes fixes for the individual speech offenses and suggests a more comprehensive solution: a “Unified Liability Theory,” pursuant to which there would be four criminal modalities placed in one statutory provision and applying to genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes: (1) incitement; (2) speech abetting; (3) instigation; and (4) ordering. Apart from the issue of fragmentation, experts have failed to find an accurate designation for this body of law. “International Incitement Law” and “International Hate Speech Law,” two of the typical labels, do not capture the law’s breadth or its proper relationship to mass violence. So with a more holistic and accurate approach in mind, this book proposes a new name for the overall body of international rules and jurisprudence: “atrocity speech law.”