What a plebiscite stay on hate speech laws would mean for the HIV+ in Australia

An interesting article looking at the sorts of things that end up being prosecuted under hate speech laws; the laws that the Australian Christian Lobby so stupidly put forward to be suspended during a plebiscite debate on marriage equality.

They haven't a snowballs chance in hell BTW. They've just made themselves look exactly who they are, incredibly stupid bigots. However it has highlighted the sort of nuts who will receive gov funding to mount their case in Australia, should the plebiscite actually get up after all the opposition now against the thing.

So imagine your neighbours have been champing at the bit to have a go at you about being an HIV+ gay person (finding out your status for whatever reason), but are stymied but the hate laws. Imagine that for a period of weeks those laws were suspended, allowing you're neighbours to go after you like they've wanted to for ages.

This actually happened in Australia under the hate laws. Imagine if those laws where suspended? The neighbours would have gotten away with treating someone like this and there would have been absolutely nothing that could have been done about it.

In 1996 a man who was HIV positive faced extreme abuse from his neighbours. One respondent called him a “gay faggot”. Another said “I don’t want faggots living near my baby.” Similar behaviour continued for over a year. The conduct was deemed to have breached NSW homosexual vilification laws. The man, who experienced severe psychological distress as a result of the comments, was awarded $50,000 in damages from the two respondents. The Guardian   

There would be no payment. No court. The man would have simply had to cop it.