GROUNDSWELL OF ANTISEMITISM

“Hate speech is a menace to democratic values, social stability and peace,” Guterres said as he spoke at the opening of the month-long UN Human Rights Council’s 40th session in Geneva.

The United Nations plans to scale up its response to hate speech, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said on Monday as he warned against a rising tide of xenophobia, including antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred.

“Hate speech is a menace to democratic values, social stability and peace,” Guterres said as he spoke at the opening of the month-long UN Human Rights Council’s 40th session in Geneva. “We are seeing a ground swell of xenophobia, racism and intolerance, including rising antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred.”

Hate speech has spread “like wildfire through social media, the Internet, and conspiracy theories. It is abetted by a public discourse that stigmatizes women, minorities, migrants and refugees.”

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