The Yonkers Police Department was notified on March 21 that a video posted on YouTube, which showed footage from an apartment building entrance of an elderly asian resident being beaten by a man, would be taken down because “it violates our violent or graphic content policy.”
The decison was objected to by the YPD who posted on Facebook, ” Dear YouTube, Safety isn’t derived from censoring content and information; it’s the product of a free society that adheres to the rule of law.
The decision by YouTube raises an interesting debate over whether certain images should be shown to the public to create awareness, and opposition to hate, or whether the images and content are too graphic to be shared with the community.
There are valid arguments to be considered on both sides of this debate. Another area of hate crime in Westchester has been in the posting of anti-semetic symbols and swastikas. It has been the policy of Yonkers Rising, Westchester Rising and YonkersTimes.com to try and print these symbols of hate, as a way to warn the public about them, but also to be aware if they see them to report them.
But we also understand that the images, or in this case, the video content, is difficult to see and to watch.
