Thank God, we see these phenomena on a scale infinitely smaller than we experienced in World War II Europe. But to hear these hateful jokes, and witness their deadly consequences in America, on any scale at all, is shocking. One may laugh at African-Americans, and claim that it's only a joke. We should not have been surprised by that barbaric lynching in East Texas. Little wonder that jokes told at the expense of homosexuals are popular among those who hate gay men and lesbians.
Men joke about women.
Most of us laugh, but others interpret the joke as a statement that women are laughable, so their pain is unimportant. The statistics of spousal abuse, of men who murder their wives, should teach us not to laugh. Our ancient rabbis were very wise. They taught us that to diminish the dignity of another person is equivalent to spilling that person's blood. Lives made worthless through humor may seem to be expendable.