I remember the controversy that erupted in the late 1970's when a handful of Nazis applied for a permit to march through Skokie, a Chicago suburb that was home to a large number of Holocaust survivors. Pretty offensive idea. But the net can also become a global Skokie, a place where bigots and hatemongers can be exposed and condemned by a diverse international community. Committed to the principles of free speech and open debate, Nizkor provides links to the very hate speech sites that it seeks to discredit. As was proven in Skokie, exposure is a far more effective weapon against hate speech than is suppression.
Censorship can play into the hands of hate groups.
Indeed, one of the most active Holocaust revisionists on the Internet, Ernst Zundel, claims that the Canadian government's attempts to silence his website demonstrate the truth of his message. So let the bigots have their say, and let the larger community respond. I've seen many instances in which a racist or homophobic post in a newsgroup has set off a tidal wave of condemnation. Anyone who ventures onto the net should be prepared for a wide variety of ideas, including some that will strike them as offensive. Just as the strength of the Internet is chaos, so the strength of our liberty depends upon the chaos and cacophony of the unfettered speech the First Amendment protects.