http://www.intellectualconservative.com/2011/02/25/journalist-in-france-convicted-for-anti-muslim-hate-speech/
By Selwyn Duke, on February 25th, 2011
Eric Zemmour made the mistake of pointing out that most drug dealers in France are blacks and Arabs.
We've heard a lot about Geert Wilders, the Dutch parliamentarian whose warnings about Muslim influence in his nation placed him in the crosshairs of the powers-that-be. But while the tow-headed modern-day Templar has thus far dodged the hangman on Truth-speech charges, another intrepid defender of Western civilization has not been so lucky. And we haven't heard much about him.
He is French journalist Eric Zemmour, and he was just convicted this week of "inciting racism." Writes The New American's R. Cort Kirkwood:
Zemmour's "controversial" remarks included his observation that most drug dealers in France were black or Arab, and that employers "have the right" to deny employment to those two groups of people.
Zemmour's criminal speech occurred on a popular talk show during a discussion of why French police seem to stop minorities more than whites. Said Zemmour: "But why are they stopped 17 times? Why? Because most dealers are blacks and Arabs. That's a fact."
So Zemmour wound up in the French dock, and must now pay $14,000 to five groups that sued him for racism.
According to the New York Times, the French court said Zemmour had "gone beyond the permitted bounds of the right to freedom of speech," and that ". . . Zemmour had a particular responsibility to respect those limits as a 'professional of the media and of expression.'"