Hate Speech in Bumper Stickers in Jordan

Abstract

This study investigates hate speech in bumper stickers in Jordan. A random corpus of 220 bumper stickers has been collected by the researchers themselves over the period of a year during which they have been commuting from their place of living to the Hashemite University. Graphics and images of any kind and shape are excluded. The findings show that 120 stickers out of 220 exhibit hate speech at the thematic level, and 50 stickers show structural hate speech since they restrictively use imperatives. Stickers displaying thematic hate speech are divided into five categories: stickers with direct threats to others’ souls and properties; stickers with challenges to others; stickers displaying driver’s disappointment, despair, and misery; stickers displaying indifference to others’ feelings, ideas, and properties; and stickers with implicit hate speech. Finally, the findings show that although the targeted stickers show hate speech, they do not carry any indication of blasphemy or disloyalty, and they do not gear addressees towards vandalism.