Should intolerance be tolerated?
No, because there are moral reasons not to. Racism and sexism and bigotry are corrosive to the human spirit in any form, and thus immoral.
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Intolerance of the form “I hate soccer
” can be tolerated just fine. There’s nothing moral about hating soccer. Soccer isn’t a human being. -
Intolerance of the form “I hate brown people / muslims / women” should never be tolerated, because it is denigrating other human beings.
Now, what is the difference between the two? How does one determine whether a law is just or unjust? A just law is a man made code that squares with the moral law or the law of God. An unjust law is a code that is out of harmony with the moral law. To put it in the terms of St. Thomas Aquinas: An unjust law is a human law that is not rooted in eternal law and natural law. Any law that uplifts human personality is just. Any law that degrades human personality is unjust.
