About the judgment 259/2011 of the Spanish Supreme Court: hate speech, incitement and right to collective honor. A new twist against the prohibition of extreme speech?

Abstract

The Spanish case law has followed different directions with regard to the criminalization of hate speech, but always with the incitement requirement to assess the relevant offense. However, those variations have resulted ultimately in a restriction of hate speech bans that weakens the instruments of criminal punishment against it. Regarding this situation, it could be recovered the initial approach of the Constitutional Court, and admitted claims against libel groups without departing from a Spanish case law unlikely to criminal prosecution of hate speech.