SPLC admits it was wrong about Maajid Nawaz. Donates $3.375 million to his foundation.

[realibrad]

https://www.splcenter.org/news/2018...egarding-maajid-nawaz-and-quilliam-foundation

https://www.splcenter.org/splc-statement-video

Today, we entered into a settlement with and offered our sincerest apology to Mr. Maajid Nawaz and his organization, the Quilliam Foundation, for including them in our publication A Journalist’s Manual: Field Guide to Anti-Muslim Extremists. Given our understanding of the views of Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam, it was our opinion at the time that the Field Guide was published that their inclusion was warranted. But after getting a deeper understanding of their views and after hearing from others for whom we have great respect, we realize that we were simply wrong to have included Mr. Nawaz and Quilliam in the Field Guide in the first place.

The SPLC is trying to get their insurance to pay for that, so its not a huge hit to them, but its something.

Some background on Maajid Nawaz, he was a former Muslim extremist and after reforming now has a foundation (Quilliam) that fights Muslim extremism while trying to reform Islam.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maajid_Nawaz

 

[jackstar7]

It's fun to think about which kinds of groups admit mistakes.

 

[realibrad]

It's fun to think about which kinds of groups admit mistakes.

A group that smeared the name of someone that risks his life for the betterment of society.

The SPLC has a great history of fighting racism and hate. Sadly, they have lost their way and had people that lied and would not change their published lies.

Maajid tried to explain that what had been published was wrong but they fought him and kept it until he sued them.

So what was the point of your comment?

 

[Incorruptible]

The splc should be ashamed of themselves. Its absolutely disgusting what they did and they are scum and filth for attacking him and then refusing to admit they made a mistake. They personally need to pay and a much higher amount.

 

[Commodus]

The splc should be ashamed of themselves. Its absolutely disgusting what they did and they are scum and filth for attacking him and then refusing to admit they made a mistake. They personally need to pay and a much higher amount.

They... just admitted to making a mistake. Explicitly. Unambiguously. And how would millions of dollars not be a large payment, even if their insurance does cover it?

 

[Incorruptible]

They... just admitted to making a mistake. Explicitly. Unambiguously. And how would millions of dollars not be a large payment, even if their insurance does cover it?

When Maajid Nawaz told them they were wrong they still wouldn't admit they made a mistake. He had to sue them. Why are you defending them when they're attacking a man who is trying to fix some serious problems?

If the insurance covers it then its not really their money though, They need to understand what they did was completely despicable and face the consequences. Otherwise these scumbags will just do it again.

 

[sandorski]

Good news. They were wrong to include him. Hopefully they can avoid making such a mistake again.

 

[Commodus]

When Maajid Nawaz told them they were wrong they still wouldn't admit they made a mistake. He had to sue them. Why are you defending them when they're attacking a man who is trying to fix some serious problems?

If the insurance covers it then its not really their money though, They need to understand what they did was completely despicable and face the consequences. Otherwise these scumbags will just do it again.

I'm saying they just apologized and admitted to a mistake now. They screwed up; they're making amends. You can either be immature and stay bitter, or an adult who's glad they did the right thing rather than wait for a verdict.

 

[Moonbeam]

Noting that one conservative member is harsh in judgment and another liberal member takes a moderate stance, my guess is that without knowing what the letters SPLC stand for, I think it is probably liberal.

 

[Incorruptible]

I'm saying they just apologized and admitted to a mistake now. They screwed up; they're making amends. You can either be immature and stay bitter, or an adult who's glad they did the right thing rather than wait for a verdict.

You're defending them. They only apologized since they were sued. Why did it take a lawsuit for them to realize how wrong and stupid they were. They thought they could attack this man and get away with it but he fought back against these cowards.

 

[sdifox]

Why should SPLC's insurance cover it? Surely there is a negligence clause in the policy?

 

[Amused]

It's fun to think about which kinds of groups admit mistakes.

This. So much this. Science, political justice, real medicine, etc... All have one thing in common: The integrity of fact based knowledge and the ability to conform worldview to fit fact.

The new "conservatism" i.e., nationalism, and religion is the exact opposite. The denial of fact and contortion of fact to fit one's worldview.

An admission of mistakes denotes integrity. Not the lack of it.

Yes, maybe the lawsuit required them to take a deeper look, however, it was that look that sparked the settlement.

Still, the SPLC retains its integrity.

 

[Incorruptible]

Why should SPLC's insurance cover it? Surely there is a negligence clause in the policy?

The insurance shouldn't cover it. They need to personally pay so they can understand not to do this again.

 

[realibrad]

I'm saying they just apologized and admitted to a mistake now. They screwed up; they're making amends. You can either be immature and stay bitter, or an adult who's glad they did the right thing rather than wait for a verdict.

What specifically did they admit to? The document was a list of things to validate saying someone was bigoted. They did not say specifically what they got wrong, just that he should not have been on the list. Logically if he should not have been on the list, then the supporting document was wrong. They did nothing to say what was wrong.

I think the reason is that Maajid wants the SPLC to learn from this and get back to what it originally was. He did not want to destroy something that for a long time has fought for progress. That said, their apology does seem a bit hollow. All the evidence was there that they were wrong, and they were willing to stick to it until they were sued. I would bet that the lawyers looked at this and said that at best it was published lies. Going through a lawsuit would expose that they were spreading lies and were unwilling to retract them. That would ultimately crush an institution that for a long time fought for progress and civil rights. That was too dangerous given the current political climate.

 

[IJTSSG]

Now we know who's keeping Morris Dees taint clean.

Good job!

 

[Commodus]

You're defending them. They only apologized since they were sued. Why did it take a lawsuit for them to realize how wrong and stupid they were. They thought they could attack this man and get away with it but he fought back against these cowards.

So, you've chosen to be a bitter child, then.

Yeah, they should've been better about it. But what good are you doing, exactly, by continuing to attack them after they've done the right thing? How do you think people grow and develop? They learn from mistakes. They move forward. They don't get hung up like you do.

 

[Commodus]

What specifically did they admit to? The document was a list of things to validate saying someone was bigoted. They did not say specifically what they got wrong, just that he should not have been on the list. Logically if he should not have been on the list, then the supporting document was wrong. They did nothing to say what was wrong.

I think the reason is that Maajid wants the SPLC to learn from this and get back to what it originally was. He did not want to destroy something that for a long time has fought for progress. That said, their apology does seem a bit hollow. All the evidence was there that they were wrong, and they were willing to stick to it until they were sued. I would bet that the lawyers looked at this and said that at best it was published lies. Going through a lawsuit would expose that they were spreading lies and were unwilling to retract them. That would ultimately crush an institution that for a long time fought for progress and civil rights. That was too dangerous given the current political climate.

I think you're reading too much into it. It was a bit hollow, but it was direct, clear and accompanied by meaningful reparations. I'm not sure that we could expect much more.

My beef is that people like incorruptible seem more interested in petty vengeance than the actual result. Like he's more interested in twisting the knife and making the SPLC suffer than anything else.

 

[alcoholbob]

They... just admitted to making a mistake. Explicitly. Unambiguously. And how would millions of dollars not be a large payment, even if their insurance does cover it?

By mistake you mean they targeted someone who was well funded and could successfully hurt them financially with a major lawsuit. So mistake purely in the Darwinian sense?

 

[Jhhnn]

The SPLC is much despised on the Right so it's no surprise who's tearing them down. They've given some of the very fine people a hard time for a long time & bankrupted a major white supremacist organization.

It's when the haters get to scream "Nuh-uhh! They're the real haters!"

 

[Jhhnn]

What specifically did they admit to? The document was a list of things to validate saying someone was bigoted. They did not say specifically what they got wrong, just that he should not have been on the list. Logically if he should not have been on the list, then the supporting document was wrong. They did nothing to say what was wrong.

I think the reason is that Maajid wants the SPLC to learn from this and get back to what it originally was. He did not want to destroy something that for a long time has fought for progress. That said, their apology does seem a bit hollow. All the evidence was there that they were wrong, and they were willing to stick to it until they were sued. I would bet that the lawyers looked at this and said that at best it was published lies. Going through a lawsuit would expose that they were spreading lies and were unwilling to retract them. That would ultimately crush an institution that for a long time fought for progress and civil rights. That was too dangerous given the current political climate.

Oh, please. A trial would not have revealed more than the settlement. The contention that the SPLC was deliberately spreading lies is scurrilous.

Your concerns are duly noted.

 

[UNCjigga]

The insurance shouldn't cover it. They need to personally pay so they can understand not to do this again.

You mad, bro? Which one of the SPLC-monitored groups do you belong to?

 

[realibrad]

I think you're reading too much into it. It was a bit hollow, but it was direct, clear and accompanied by meaningful reparations. I'm not sure that we could expect much more.

My beef is that people like incorruptible seem more interested in petty vengeance than the actual result. Like he's more interested in twisting the knife and making the SPLC suffer than anything else.

It was direct as they directly apologized to Maajid. It was clear only in the sense that they named Maajid, but in no way was it clear about what they got wrong. Meaningful is very questionable. If the SPLC was doing meaningful work, then this helps nobody in net. Maajid did not make money from this as the money went to the foundation. The SPLC is also trying to get their insurance to pay for it, so its not like they are taking a huge hit if that happens.

As for people wanting vengeance, the only part that I think he went too far on was the scum and filth. I do think that what was published was an attempt to do a good thing in their view. The problem is that the institutions that we built on the Left are being used to do harm instead of good.

Specifically Incorruptible wanting the SPLC to pay for this and to admit they were wrong does not seem like vengeance. If he does want vengeance, then I think he is wrong, but I don't see vengeance in what I read, unless I missed a post.

 

[realibrad]

Oh, please. A trial would not have revealed more than the settlement. The contention that the SPLC was deliberately spreading lies is scurrilous.

Your concerns are duly noted.

A settlement would be far less damaging than a trial where it showed that they published lies. When the article was first published, I would bet that they thought it was factual. The issue came when many reached out to the SPLC including Maajid to explain how the supporting evidence was factually incorrect and even dangerous for someone like him. He tried to get them to retract the falsehoods about him and they said no. Once they did that, once it had been explained that it was wrong, they were effectively continuing to spread things that they had been made aware of that were wrong. A trial would have shown that and that would have damaged the SPLC far more than the money paid.

I also did not say I was concerned for the SPLC. Weird that you threw that in.

 

[Commodus]

It was direct as they directly apologized to Maajid. It was clear only in the sense that they named Maajid, but in no way was it clear about what they got wrong. Meaningful is very questionable. If the SPLC was doing meaningful work, then this helps nobody in net. Maajid did not make money from this as the money went to the foundation. The SPLC is also trying to get their insurance to pay for it, so its not like they are taking a huge hit if that happens.

As for people wanting vengeance, the only part that I think he went too far on was the scum and filth. I do think that what was published was an attempt to do a good thing in their view. The problem is that the institutions that we built on the Left are being used to do harm instead of good.

Specifically Incorruptible wanting the SPLC to pay for this and to admit they were wrong does not seem like vengeance. If he does want vengeance, then I think he is wrong, but I don't see vengeance in what I read, unless I missed a post.

Apart from trying to call a historic champion of minorities "scum and filth" (oh, and "scumbags"), he also said they needed to pay a "much higher amount." But of course, he didn't say what would make him happy, probably because this is purely about irrational contempt for the SPLC more than anything.

 

[fskimospy]

A settlement would be far less damaging than a trial where it showed that they published lies. When the article was first published, I would bet that they thought it was factual. The issue came when many reached out to the SPLC including Maajid to explain how the supporting evidence was factually incorrect and even dangerous for someone like him. He tried to get them to retract the falsehoods about him and they said no. Once they did that, once it had been explained that it was wrong, they were effectively continuing to spread things that they had been made aware of that were wrong. A trial would have shown that and that would have damaged the SPLC far more than the money paid.

I also did not say I was concerned for the SPLC. Weird that you threw that in.

I bet you people constantly contact SPLC saying that the things they publish about them are lies. Those are often lies in and of themselves so it's not at all surprising that SPLC does not take their word for it. If you have some information on what process SPLC used (or didn't use!) in order to examine the truth or falsity of those counter claims that would be helpful. Without knowledge of that, saying they published lies could potentially be a defamatory statement by you of them, haha.

Regardless of all that the SPLC does a great deal of good but in doing so will invariably get some things wrong. The right answer is to call them out when they do and that's great, but there's no need for concern trolling about the institutions the left built in this way. If anything at the current time they aren't being used aggressively enough.

Also come the fuck on. Any rational person reading Incorruptible's post would see it was strongly motivated by vengeance and spite, it's implicitly obvious.