not psycho
Member
On the one hand, we have the fact that "racist" is not, and should not be, a protected class. And the fact that expressing yourself in public, by your own name, on the internet should not be a magic shield to protect you from the nature of your expressions. Nor should expressing yourself on the radio, television, etc. If not for the problem mentioned in the next paragraph, there would be zero problem with notifying employers.
On the other hand, we have the special pitfalls of internet detectives. By special pitfalls, I mean this: when the police first investigate an accusation, they don't have to broadcast it to the world. If they discover early it is a mistake, they never need broadcast it. Internet detectives broadcast with impunity, early, and without legal standards. This could result in innocent people being identified with name and location and threatened, fired, expelled, harassed, terrified, or worse.
I'm not sure what the solution is, but here are some ideas:
1. Have a government agency whose job includes investigating these things. Then the early evidence could be sent to them instead of broadcasted to the world, and the accused would have a chance to defend themself before being outed. This would work well, except that it costs money. Most people in the US would probably not consider it worth it.
2. Notify an employer, but do not give the information to the general public. The employer is in a position to ask their employee personally about the issue, while the general public may threaten/harass without the facts.
3. No change. It is incumbent on social media to police their own accounts, false or mistaken accusations can happen elsewhere too, and in any case if a mistake is made it can likely be rectified.
On the other hand, we have the special pitfalls of internet detectives. By special pitfalls, I mean this: when the police first investigate an accusation, they don't have to broadcast it to the world. If they discover early it is a mistake, they never need broadcast it. Internet detectives broadcast with impunity, early, and without legal standards. This could result in innocent people being identified with name and location and threatened, fired, expelled, harassed, terrified, or worse.
I'm not sure what the solution is, but here are some ideas:
1. Have a government agency whose job includes investigating these things. Then the early evidence could be sent to them instead of broadcasted to the world, and the accused would have a chance to defend themself before being outed. This would work well, except that it costs money. Most people in the US would probably not consider it worth it.
2. Notify an employer, but do not give the information to the general public. The employer is in a position to ask their employee personally about the issue, while the general public may threaten/harass without the facts.
3. No change. It is incumbent on social media to police their own accounts, false or mistaken accusations can happen elsewhere too, and in any case if a mistake is made it can likely be rectified.