ABSTRACT
The introduction sets out the book’s core distinction between “no platform” and “hate speech” forms of anti-racist and anti-fascist politics. Both engage with the question of when, if ever, it is appropriate to prohibit humiliating speech. No platform is a narrow form of politics; it argues that only fascist speech should be prohibited. Hate speech, by contrast, believes that it is permissible to prohibit offensive words more widely, if they are racist or sexist or homophobic, etc. No platform permits ordinary people to limit another person’s words from below. Hate speech politics allows speech to be banned from above, by a state, an employer, or a social media platform.
