So what is the worst crime in America. Murder? Rape? Pedophilia? Corruption? You might be surprised to find that it is none of the above!

In most (if not all societies) murder is the ‘worst’ crime. In many cultures it is punishable by death. Rape and pedophilia, and sometimes blasphemy, are close seconds. Abuse of power can be a biggie too, and has resulted in more than a few dictators hanging from lamp poles by their necks. Punishments for crimes vary and can range anywhere from death, to incarceration, to various fines, and are usually tied to the severity of the crime. In most civilized societies these laws and their commensurate punishments are written down. We’re proud of this. It means we’re civilized.

‘Civilized’ societies have generally moved away from reactionary responses such as lynch mobs and now give convicted individuals the benefit of the doubt. In the United States we call this “innocent until proven guilty,” a great invention of our Founding Fathers who’d suffered too much of this kind of unfair punishment. Indeed, our Constitution also guarantees people representation and a jury trial by their peers. In most cases, the person is even allowed to go free until the trial, which can be years away. And of course, even if proven guilty, judges have a lot of freedom in sentencing and often cite the circumstances of a crime in reducing a sentence. Of course, those who stand accused are generally offered a plea bargain: to save the time and expense of a trial they plead guilty and are given a lesser sentence. We civilized nations are proud of the way we handle crime and punishment. It proves we’re civilized.

But there is a crime in America so heinous that all these rules become null and void. For those who stand accused there is no trial. There’s not even a judge. Bail isn’t really a consideration because the punishment is immediate. Background is never considered unless to be used against the person who stands accused. While the punishment isn’t death (yet) it is nevertheless swift and comprehensive. People so accused are stripped of their worth and have their assets confiscated. In most cases their means of livelihood is taken away and their reputations irrevocably destroyed. This crime is so bad, even friends and colleagues must make strong statements against the accused lest they suffer the same fate for being loyal. If you think all this shows just how bad this crime is, the very fact that I’m publishing this piece about the crime could leave me accused of it and destroyed! It is that bad!

What is this crime of which I speak? A crime that must stand above all others given the ferocity of response and the complete lack of representation or trial afforded the accused? The crime: an arbitrary arrangement of words spoken by fools and idiots to offend people they usually don’t know. Seriously.

To say something bad about another person because of their color is the worst crime in America. Even worse than expressing a negative opinion about their sexuality. Though there seems to be open season on a person’s religion (which is guaranteed by the Constitution.) The use of a word or phrase, apparently even in private, whether it affects anyone or not, is viewed worse than murder, rape, armed robbery, slander, assault, you name it! It doesn’t even have to be spoken. It can just be a mean look. That’s what we’ve come to. We treat rapists better than this. Embezzlers who steal millions. Murderers who kill the innocent have more rights. An accusation of racism brings out the lynch mob screaming in the street. Many of us are proud of this reactionary response. We think it means we’re becoming more civilized. I think it might mean something else.

If racism has become a crime then it needs to be criminalized by law. Presently, racist comments are protected by the First Amendment so that would have to be amended. The law needs to be well defined and come with distinct penalties based on the severity of the racist action. It needs to apply equally to everyone regardless of race, creed, color, sexual orientation, political alignment, or any other differentiating factor. Until then, it’s just a lynch mob.

If you think a lynch mob is a good idea, go watch or read To Kill A Mockingbird. Do you really want to be like that? Do ya?