February Response

When We Hate...
February 1999

Click on any of the following images for a larger picture.

"Hearing God's Call to Love, Not Hate" by Traci C. West

This article looks at the story of the Good Samaritain and how our Christianity and hatred get mixed up together. A powerful study, you can click here and read it.

"When We Hate" by Loretta J. Williams, Ph.D.

Hate. Is it increasing? intractable? It is our creation and the creation of our ancestors. This article looks at

society today,
the way we make people and their situations abstract, distorted or amplified with our language
the camouflage of bigotry that we create and how we do it, and
politicizing resentment of people who are different.

You can read this article by clicking here.

"Creating Fear of Difference Online" by Kelly C. Martini

A Philadelphia-based Aryan Nation web site showed a computer image of an anti-hate activist's office being blown apart and called for her to be hung from a tree or lamp post. The ease of communication on the Internet and the rise of hate crimes can be correlated. Click here to read this article.

"When Hate Masquerades as Entertainment" by Bernard Keels

As radio and TV's family-oriented programming became the victim of low ratings and increasing competition, producers looked for new ways to make money. The sensationalized TV and tabloid radio proved effective. Click here to read about how espousing hatred and bigotry has made media money.

"Looking for Hate in All the Wrong Places" by Meg Riley

If love as an action is to advocate another's struggle for rights and empowerment, then perhaps hate is the antithesis: to struggle against another's rights, against another's claiming full power in the world. This article builds on this thesis. It looks at disguising hate in words of love; dehumanizing people under the guise of reform for a person's good; removing all women's choice under the guise of a compassionate act; and quoting scriptures out of context in order to criticize others in the name of God.

"Hating the Poor" by Ann Withorn

This article looks at the "American dream." It studies the way we categorize the poor: wording poor, good poor, bad poor, poor with dignity. And it explores poverty in our past. What would happen if we admitted our own fear of poverty? Stopped pretending that poverty could be extraordinarily noble? And instead of hating the poor, we hated the system that exploits the poor?

"39 Years to Justice" by Sandra Peters

This is the story of civil-rights activist Vernon Dahmer, Sr., who was killed by a Ku Klux Klan firebombing of his home in 1966. It's also the story of one of his murderers, Sam Bowers, and his 1998 trial, where justice finally occurred. Click here to read this story.

"Forgiveness: No Sissies Need Apply!" by Linda H. Hollies

When you are a victim, how do you get to forgiveness? This article explores this tough, haunting question from the point of view of the author, a victim of childhood incest. She explores the daunting task of forgiveness, the hard process through which she went, and the change it finally brought about.

"U.S. and Muslims: Creating An Enemy" by Jane Eesley

Why do we stereotype Mulsims? try to make them an enemy? believe they're a political threat? This article explores the myths of Muslims that we have created as a society; anti-Muslim images and languages; signs of hope in the U.S./Muslim Relationship; and what we can do. Click here to read the article.

"Contemplating Matthew Shepard" by Mab Segrest

This article looks at the growing epidemia of hate crimes against people who are different from us. It tells the story of Matthew Shephard, statistics of crimes against homosexuals, hate crime legislation, and the church's role in stating where certain people are included in spiritual community.

Other Articles:

See also: