Protected by online anonymity, hate speech becomes an online mainstay
Protected by online anonymity, hate speech becomes an online mainstay
In a comment posted on an online video advertisement in opposition to the Islamic center, Eyeris — an online pseudonym — calls for the bombing of all mosques in the Western world. In a comment on a different video, he calls for the annihilation of all Muslims.
But he’d only say this online. The 39-year-old relies on his cloak of anonymity to shield him from what he believes is the certain scorn he’d face if he uttered these words in public. In fact, Eyeris is a pseudonym for his YouTube alias. He wears two layers of armor.
“I don’t think I would say this in open due to restrictions. I have a business and cannot afford to speak freely in our days of freedom of speech. Haha, what a big joke actually, if you think about it,” says Eyeris, in an e-mail from Belgium, where he currently resides. “Political correctness is killing everything freedom stands for.”