discuss Blatantly Racist Domains

[Ategy]

So I'm going through tomorrow's auction list at GoDaddy (technically today, but I haven't slept yet) .. and I come across the following domain:

GasTheJews.com

I really don't want this to be a "GoDaddy" thing .. as in fact I've probably gone through well over a million domains and for the most part now that I think about it I'm actually impressed with how few I've seen considering the number of domains. The very reason it's hard to find good domains is why I like domaining as the best way to be successful at domaining is to find good names that don't get noticed .. so it's very understandable that occasional bad names also might go under the radar.

I've seen tons of adult domains which don't bother me at all .. I've seen a few borderline or potentially dual meaning domains which also don't bother me .. even the reaction to having "retarded.com" in the NamesCon auction seemed a little much to me as there are potentially possible uses of the domain that wouldn't necessarily be offensive ... but I don't ever recall seeing a domain quite as blatantly racist as this one with absolutely no dis-ambiguity or potential alternate/dual-meaning. I'm not jewish .. but the domain still crosses me as wrong.


I came here to share because I'm truly curious as to if anyone has seen anything similar? Are there policies in place for things this extreme? I'm a hard core believer in freedom of expression .. GasTheJews really crosses my usually extremely tolerant line.


Note: Sadly .. not only was it registered once .. but it actually has a bid!

 

[Kuffy]

I owned nigga.com several years ago ( or it might have been a two word like niggagirls.com, I don't remember). I didn't get round to using it, and I let it drop after a couple of years. Imho, it's what you do with the name that matters. However, I can't think of a use for that gas name - not even for a Jewish comic.

 

[biggie]

Hi

there are other terms used frequently, which may seem benign to one group but racists to another

here's an old discussion on white list vs black lists

including the use of phrases like black ball and white lies

http://garysaid.com/are-the-terms-whitelist-and-blacklist-racist/


imo...

 

[Ategy]

So the question would be ...

I think you meant to say "questions"! lol

But seriously .. you asked a lot of good questions .. I'll actually again answer to the best of my knowledge .. but just keep in mind I'm not a lawyer or anything .. I'm simply very interested on the subject and read a couple of books on it ...

This considered hate speech or just a string of words with a "potentially" hateful meaning? Who should decide if it is or is not hate speech?
This domain is a call to action for genocide .. obviously in the end a court would need to decide that fact .. but this case is very clear.

Is this even speech?
As domainers .. I think this is far and away the most interesting question. I'm fairly sure it could be legally argued that it is. The "speech" in free speech really is the wrong term .. it's more "communication". A lot of texts on the subject refer to pamphlets .. but it could be books .. or sign language. It's a very sticky subject sometimes.

Who's jurisdiction should it fall under if deemed a hate speech crime? Probably the domain owners jurisdiction?
Due to the international nature of the internet I'm thinking an international court. I'm not sure what legal authority ICANN actually falls under. Although I'm not sure that matters. If not international than it would more likely be at the registrars' jurisdiction. Maybe ccTLD's would fall under national court. Again .. these are my guesses .. I'd love to get an expert's opinion .. although I'm not sure if a domain has ever even faced this sort of test.

What if hate speech is not outlawed in the domain owners jurisdiction?
It might or might not matter .. I can think of arguments on both sides. It certainly wouldn't matter under international law. Whereas if it was a ccTLD it could possibly mean they can do what they want as I'm pretty sure ICANN has no oversight on ccTLD's

What if the name is held in privacy?
The wouldn't matter ... IF this did make it to court a subpoena would quickly and easily get the information required/

Who would be responsible to provide the legal challenge to uncover the privacy. And pay for that legal challenge?
These sort of things aren't really an issue for international cases .. there are treaties and such things that allocates funds to support these courts and staffing (in The Hague I think)


Where do we draw the line? IHateDogs.com? KillRedheads.com? Is that now considered hate speech.
Actually .. I'm quite sure that there are indeed very clear guidelines for clear offences. There obviously is a line of tolerance draw .. and in the end it's usually the courts who decide based on law. This is one part of the debate that a lot of people admittedly have a hard time with though.

Does that make it right? Ethical? Professional? No! But the reality is, there is too much gray area here to expect the registrars/registries to manage this.
For the 99% of other dual-meaning borderline domains we cross everyday I completely agree. But again .. I'm rather certain this domain falls well past the defined line.
There also is the age old question of even IF the registrar is responsible or not for the content of others. This type of thing is a huge debate for sites like Facebook and YouTube .. where content owners are suying them because pirated media is being shared on their sites .. but those companies argue they are simply tools and that it is the end user who is responsible .. both arguments do have some validity .. but I think the way things are going .. that the networks are indeed responsible for the content shared in their network.

 

[Ategy]

I own Hatred.com and Blacks.net - people have told me I should donate both so they don't end up in the wrong hands.

I owned nigga.com several years ago ( or it might have been a two word like niggagirls.com, I don't remember). Imho, it's what you do with the name that matters.

That's kinda my point of this discussion .. hatred, blacks and even nigga .. are words that aren't necessarily "hate speech" unless given context. I have absolutely no problems with them existing as domains .. just as I'm pretty sure there wouldn't be a strong legal argument against them. Let me be clear however that I would never own nigga as a personal choice .. and that depending on the specific content of it's website .. the site might be considered "hate speech" while the domain itself not be.

GasTheJews is a call to action of genocide .. there is a very big difference in both that it has clarity and more importantly that it has intention.

 

[Kuffy]

Some black girls are really hot. I think Tina Turner is a great example.

 

[uglydork]

That's kinda my point of this discussion .. hatred, blacks and even nigga .. are words that aren't necessarily "hate speech" unless given context. I have absolutely no problems with them existing as domains .. just as I'm pretty sure there wouldn't be a strong legal argument against them. Let me be clear however that I would never own nigga as a personal choice .. and that depending on the specific content of it's website .. the site might be considered "hate speech" while the domain itself not be.

GasTheJews is a call to action of genocide .. there is a very big difference in both that it has clarity and more importantly that it has intention.

I am careful when I get an offer on Blacks or Hate - I look to see if their name pops up with hate speech. The money hasn't been right yet but I don't think I would ever sell to a hate site (KKK-StormFront)

 

[Ategy]

I am careful when I get an offer on Blacks or Hate - I look to see if their name pops up with hate speech. The money hasn't been right yet but I don't think I would ever sell to a hate site (KKK-StormFront)

Legally I don't think you'll have any issues with those domains .. although obviously for you morally there is a concern .. which I commend you for and think is good. I don't think it's impossible to end up finding good homes for those domains. That's the whole point I'm trying to make about those other 99.9% of other potentially offensive names .. they aren't necessarily hateful unless placed in context.

I'm a little less sure for Nigga though .. as that's derived from n*gger .. of which I'm actually not sure if there is an expanded definition. Meaning that if it meant "people of black colour" then it would legally be ok .. but if it meant something with an action like "people who deserve death", then possibly it could technically be considered hate speech.

At the end of the day on a legal front it really depends on the exact words (their exact definitions) and the context.

 

[MapleDots]

GasTheJews.com

I really don't want this to be a "GoDaddy" thing .. as in fact I've probably gone through well over a million domains and for the most part now that I think about it I'm actually impressed with how few I've seen considering the number of domains. The very reason it's hard to find good domains is why I like domaining as the best way to be successful at domaining is to find good names that don't get noticed .. so it's very understandable that occasional bad names also might go under the radar.

I am with you, a hate domain should not be in the public domain. The only problem is where do you stop, everyone will have a different opinion of what hate is and where to draw the line.

What about GasedTheJews.com - what if someone wants to showcase the monstrosities that occurred. Would the domain name be considered hate? I bet a few would say yes and a few would say no. What about porn? Some would say yes and again some would say no.

I don't proclaim to know the answer to the question but in my opinion hate domains should at the very least be removed from auction. What a private individual registers is not in our control but as a company godaddy should have some sort of policy in place.

I voted.... report to registrar

 

[Ategy]

1 - .. everyone will have a different opinion of what hate is and where to draw the line.

2 - Would the domain name be considered hate? I bet a few would say yes and a few would say no.

3 - What about porn? Some would say yes and again some would say no.

4 - godaddy should have some sort of policy in place.

1 - Thankfully "everyone's" opinion doesn't really matter .. it'll usually come down to a court trained in matter of law.

2 - Again .. it's really the context of the wording that matter. Past tense could very easily change the context from a genocidal call of action .. to just a statement of historical fact (in which case the domain would likely not be a problem .. but the site content could be)

3 - Adult porn I'm pretty sure is legal in international law .. where as if it was children involved it would probably fall under international law.

4- Sigh .. we'll find out in under 67 hours ...
GoDaddy: "We've received your question. You can expect a response within 72 hours."

 

[MapleDots]

I owned nigga.com several years ago ( or it might have been a two word like niggagirls.com, I don't remember). I didn't get round to using it, and I let it drop after a couple of years. Imho, it's what you do with the name that matters. However, I can't think of a use for that gas name - not even for a Jewish comic.

I would buy fag.com if I could turn a profit on it. Some names have been reclaimed and almost have a different meaning today. A rapper would probably pay big for nigga.com so it could just be a business decision with nothing implied for the person selling it.. It's like @Ategy.com says... it's how you use it that matters.

I do have to agree though that I cannot find a use for GasTheJews.com and it's probably a great example of a truly hateful domain. You cannot reclaim those words and turn them into anything good, it is pure hatred all the way.

No different from BombBostonAgain.com - could you imagine such a domain?
The line should be drawn somewhere... we are people and we have to set an example for our children.

What in incredible post though, what a thought provoking conversation. I will be keenly interested to see what GoDaddy does. I hope they pull it and let the domain return to oblivion from where it began.

 

[Kuffy]

I'm not politically correct, and I don't have problems with discussing issues that many people avoid. What annoys me are the members of the knitting club that get a blackboard renamed as a chalkboard, and who move away when a black guy sits next to them. Also, I think that "black" is a simple description of skin colour, and shouldn't cause any problems. The current alternative " a person of colour" is far more racist, and it smacks of white supremacy, and I refuse to use it.

 

[Paul Nicks]

Hey .. I'm just sparking a conversation and was curious what or if policies are in place. This is literally a one in a million+ domain for me.

Or even just because the domain is technically allowed to exist, doesn't mean a company is forced to promote/auction it.

I'm a GoDaddy customer .. and I'm allowed to have the opinion that they might want to reconsider actually having it listed after being made aware of it.

Heck .. people wanted to boycott smarties because they removed the blue ones .. I'd think this is at least one level above that?


Curious to get feedback from @Joe Styler or @Paul Nicks on this ... and again .. I want to stress that I'm in no way implying anything negative towards them at this point in any way as it's extremely easy for domains to get past whatever filters they might have in place.

That isn't a domain that I see available currently at auction. Have a great day.

 

[MapleDots]

That isn't a domain that I see available currently at auction. Have a great day.

I visited the supplied link and saw the domain at auction Paul

It now says the domain is no longer available

So I guess we got our answer

GoDaddy did censor it and so it should be. I'm not for censorship but I think there are limits, even when it comes to speech or expression. In this case I am glad to see it was tossed from auction.

Question is... can it be prevented from re-registering?
Can it be put in a holding pool where it will never again see the light of day?

 

[Ategy]

That isn't a domain that I see available currently at auction. Have a great day.

I visited the supplied link and saw the domain at auction Paul

It now says the domain is no longer available

So I guess we got our answer

Not really .. the domain went to auction at 12:41pm (GoDaddy Time .. = 3.5 hours before this post)
I don't know if it was removed or not as I had finally fallen asleep!

This is the very open ended email reply I got from GoDaddy at about 8am their time:

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We’ve informed the appropriate parties here so further action may be taken accordingly. As you’ve mentioned, we do have many filters in place, but technology is never infallible. We appreciate your understanding.

Unfortunately it doesn't really say anything about what what done .. nor what their, verisign's or ICANN policies are. At first glace I'm guessing that they actually do have automated filters for something like this .. and that if they got it in time they would have done something.

This discussion really hasn't anything to do with GoDaddy specifically .. and again I want to be clear that considering this is pretty much the first domain in well over a million domains on the lists I've scanned I'm assuming that they actually do a good job.


That being said .. @Paul Nicks .. when you have some time could you actually look into what happened? It was auction # 226933694 .. I think we'd all also be interested in knowing what GoDaddy's policies actually are. This is a really interesting topic with lots of potentially valid policies .. I'm thinking whatever policies are there at any registrar are more for legal reasons than political/ideological preference .. so nothing personal either way .. just curious as to what goes on in the huge machine.

Thanks

 

[Want2learn]

Personally as one who is Jewish but not religious I say, don't take it down. Sell it develop it. I like to know who it is that hates me. Not many legit companies are going to invest in a domain like this!

 

[Ategy]

Personally as one who is Jewish but not religious I say, don't take it down. Sell it develop it. I like to know who it is that hates me. Not many legit companies are going to invest in a domain like this!

Doesn't really address the question as to if the wording of a domain is to actually be considered hate speech or not?

Plus the problem with what you're saying is that in most cases it's not about investing or making money .. it's about spreading hate and trying to convince others (usually the younger generation) that prejudicial hate is appropriate and justified.

 

[Want2learn]

Doesn't really address the question as to if the wording of a domain is to actually be considered hate speech or not?

Plus the problem with what you're saying is that in most cases it's not about investing or making money .. it's about spreading hate and trying to convince others (usually the younger generation) that prejudicial hate is appropriate and justified.

Hate speech is or isn't covered under the first amendment? I think that is the broader concern. What if you were a Christian and said Jesus saves and is the only way to know God or were a Muslim and said praise to Allah . . . and the govt said that is too narrow-minded and hateful? Now the govt takes praiseAllah dot com and praiseJesus dot com down.

That is how I see it. Sounds like GoDaddy, not the govt zapped it if I am understanding correctly.

 

[tomcarl]

I think there are a lot more important issues to focus time and energy on then a random hate-speech domain that pops up on an expiring auction, but jmo. Yes, it's despicable, I agree. It's despicable how sick some people are, period.

Just being a realistic, I mean is someone supposed to manually go through every domain to make sure it isn't offensive. Some phrases just can't be flagged.

 

[Want2learn]

I think there are a lot more important issues to focus time and energy on then a random hate-speech domain that pops up on an expiring auction, but jmo. Yes, it's despicable, I agree. It's despicable how sick some people are, period.

Just being a realistic, I mean is someone supposed to manually go through every domain to make sure it isn't offensive. Some phrases just can't be flagged.

My fear is who gets to decide what is offensive? Trump, Putin, Bin Ladin, Hussein, Hitler . . . may find something we love offensive . . .

 

[Pepto]

Personally as one who is Jewish but not religious I say, don't take it down. Sell it develop it. I like to know who it is that hates me. Not many legit companies are going to invest in a domain like this!

I think who originally registered it has no anti-Semitic beliefs just a quirky name . I think i am the only one who actually thinks its a clever domain because its a well known phrase.

I'm all for freedom of speech though as @Want2learn says if anyone should be offended its the Jewish i just don't pander to feeling offended by a race/religion/sex that isn't my own.

Everyone has there right to an opinion i especially do not like heavy handed tactics used by all types to prosecute or target .

Just to add opinions are like arseholes everyone has one.

 

[Hemanttilotia]

I have blacknigga.com, and I thought it would be good for some community website.

 

[Kate]

Even offensive names may have a purpose and be developed in a certain way.
Check out hitler.de for example.

On the occasion, I have registered sensitive domains so that they are not left available to other people who may have less honorable intentions. Yes, many domains are registered/acquired just to keep them out of 'competitors'.

My guess is, a domainer will park it and it will never sell, then it will drop again. It's not very much different than buying names after tragedies live VT shooting or AF447.
So I would say it depends what will be done (or not) with this domain.

 

[Pepto]

Even offensive names may have a purpose and be developed in a certain way.
Check out hitler.de for example.

On the occasion, I have registered sensitive domains so that they are not left available to other people who may have less honorable intentions. Yes, many domains are registered/acquired just to keep them out of 'competitors'.

My guess is, a domainer will park it and it will never sell, then it will drop again. It's not very much different than buying names after tragedies live VT shooting or AF447.
So I would say it depends what will be done (or not) with this domain.

It's modern culture to be offended by anything and everything you could register xyz and someone would take the hump.

A segway/tangent here in Scotland ,Glasgow to be precise they do an annual lgbtq(a-z) walk . Anyways short story transvestites where banned by the organizers ... Crazy right a march about acceptance and love and banning a group i thought was very hypocritical and funny at the same time.

 

[Emmy101]

The owner of the domain is happy and thanks you for the free advertising on a big community like NP !! something I hate on social media are those negative advertisement! feeding the trolls will only make them bigger!

 

[MapleDots]

I was going to like your post but for some reason my like link has disappeared for this topic and I cannot like anything. Works in other topics but not in this topic.

Anyways.... here is my like

Anyone else missing the like link

The owner of the domain is happy and thanks you for the free advertising on a big community like NP !! something I hate on social media are those negative advertisement! feeding the trolls will only make them bigger!

How do you know this?