And it's a powerful reminder that the most important tool for a Virtual Activist is not a computer, but the information that it can store and transmit to others. We Will Remember All sorts of hate mongers are using the Internet to spread racism, anti-Semitism, and bigotry. As a Jew, I feel a particularly strong sense of outrage over the Holocaust denial movement, which seeks to erase this ugly chapter from history. Hate speech, bigotry and other forms of intolerance are prevalent in cyberspace because the Internet provides an unfiltered medium of communication, and whenever people can speak freely, there are some who speak to the darker side of human nature. As offensive as this can be, I believe the best way to counter hate speech is not with censorship, but with more speech.
Web sites can be particularly effective forums for countering hate speech.
The Nizkor Foundation, for example, exists specifically to refute the Holocaust denial movement. Free speech advocates who are looking for ways to counter hate speech will find the resources they need at this site. The tools are different, but the techniques that activists need to organize in cyberspace are not very different than the tools that activists use to organize in their own communities. Electronic petitions and E-mail action alerts are digitized versions of organizing tools that grassroots activists have been using quite effectively for years. These tools can be more powerful in cyberspace because they make it possible to reach greater numbers of people, to reach them almost instantaneously, and to reach them with minimal cost.