A paradox

I ponder on the laws to stop hate speech
Racism, sexism, antisemitism
Do they make worse the hatred underneath

Like  self-righteous folk  hold evil out of reach
Between what is and  what is good  lies schism
I ponder on the laws to stop hate speech

What lesson does our native history teach?
We gaze into the past   through our own prism
Do we make worse the hatred underneath

What wonder do our dreams leave on the beach?
Are some deceived by their scholasticism?
I ponder on the laws to stop hate speech

By gagging those who feel  their tensions seethe
And controlling by the  law their  words and  rhythms
Do we make worse the hatred underneath?

And yet if we permit crude criticism
Are  their words endowed with some charism?
I ponder on the laws to stop hate speech
Do they almost cause the hatred underneath?