Opinion: Censorship vs. free speech

I had a small heart attack last week. While getting my daily caffeine and news dose one morning, I stumbled across a CNN article about Japanese computer games in which the objective of the game is rape.

Players can choose where to rape the virtual woman, how to rape her and how often. Such games are commonplace in Japan, and a recent effort to stop sales has caused the game to go viral – even appearing on YouTube. The first response I have toward these games (called “hentai” by the Japanese) as a female, and as a feminist at that, is outright disgust and outrage.

I quickly reposted on Facebook and seethed while turning the issue over in my head. Rape is a heinous crime with long-lasting, far-reaching effects, and it is all too common in our society. In the constant fight for social equality between the genders, there have been many obstacles to overcome – including those that are imposed by culture, class or even other women themselves.

I’m a constant crusader along with other women to overcome those obstacles, but sometimes in my fight for equality, I forget about a more far-reaching right: the right of free speech. I was reminded of that by several of the comments that were left on my Facebook post. Initially, I would have argued for the outright banning of the games by all governments everywhere, but after further consideration, I came to the conclusion that it would be the worst thing to do. Human beings, for all their flaws and shortcomings, are intelligent beings capable of knowing right and wrong.

They know that rape is wrong, but the banning of free expression is a far worse crime and signals a totalitarian rule. This case is a good example: By stopping sales of the video game in Japan, gamers protested by sending it viral across the globe. While actual acts of violence and rape are absolutely and morally wrong, the criminalization of depictions and creative expressions is more suspect.

The media is a reflection of culture, and in today’s world I see increasing visual imagery of violence, sex abuse and inequality. But instead of approaching the issues by censoring media, the emphasis instead must be placed on social definitions of right versus wrong. We as a culture must strive vehemently to teach our citizens not to rape, not to discriminate and to put down our weapons. It is only then that the media will depart from the controversy-fueled imagery that dominates the world.

Sarah Clark is a Ranger reporter and page 3 news editor. She can be reached at seclark@my.actx.edu.

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2 comments

Anonymous

Tue Apr 13 2010 15:30

Don't misunderstand me, I have heard of these games and I think they are awful... but they are not Hentai. Hentai is japanese pornography that is animated. Hentai does sometimes contain rape scenes (like "mainstream" porn) but it is usually softcore and sometimes... dare I say it... cute. Don't confuse an entire genre with a few sick games.

LaylaViolet

Thu Apr 8 2010 10:54

Everyone's going to try and show things that shouldn't be shown. And if people complain, they'll just throw the First Amendment in their faces. Free speech is important, but common sense and courtesy should be taken into consideration too.

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