In a September 2012 interview with Rolling Stone Magazine, storied singer/songwriter Bob Dylan insulted the Croatian people. Two months later, a group called the Council of Croats in France (CRICCF) filed a complaint with the French authorities. Now, Dylan is officially being charged with “public insult and inciting hate” in France.
The full comment was in response to a question regarding parallels between 1860s and present-day America. Dylan, who has always been known for his sociopolitical activism, gave the following statement:
This country is just too fucked up about color. It’s a distraction. People at each other’s throats just because they are of a different color. It’s the height of insanity, and it will hold any nation back – or any neighborhood back. Or any anything back. Blacks know that some whites didn’t want to give up slavery – that if they had their way, they would still be under the yoke, and they can’t pretend they don’t know that. If you got a slave master or Klan in your blood, blacks can sense that. That stuff lingers to this day. Just like Jews can sense Nazi blood and the Serbs can sense Croatian blood.
A lawyer for CRICCF stated that the group is not seeking financial retributions, but would like Dylan to publicly apologize.
Dylan, who is well-respected in France and recently received the prestigious Legion d’Honneur, has not yet commented on the situation. France has very strict “anti-hatred” laws, forbidding any media that might be considered discrimination.
The charges seem to be a bit of a stretch, but, then again, that is coming from my perspective as an American. In the context of the interview, it’s very apparent that Dylan is referring to a specific relationship between the Serbs and Croats, and not condemning all Croatian people. Regardless, I know I’m thankful for free speech.
-David Melamed (@DMelamz)
[Source: Yahoo! News]