Craigslist ads and interweb censorship

This article in this past Sunday's NY Times week in review brings to light recent suits brought against Craigslist for allowing discriminatory ads on their bulletin boards. The article is mainly concerned about the nature of the forum and where responsibility lies. At issue are some 200 ads identified by a housing advocate agency that in plain language suggested discriminatory practices.

One such ad stated that when looking for a roommate, "African Americans and Arabians tend to clash with me so that won't work out." I find this to be a perfectly honest assesment of what the renter is looking for. Finding a roommate is a combination of getting someone in to start paying the rent and finding compatibility so you can all live in peace together. The person who posted this ad is clearly a bigot, he/she won't get along with a black person or a muslim so the ad clearly says that to avoid anyone wasting any time. If I wanted to post an ad looking for a roommate who isn't a vegetarian, is that discrimination? (seriously, I may need to know.) Is "non-smoker" discrimination or concern for health?

I actually think that this type of ad should be encouraged, it doesn't denigrate blacks or "arabians" (was this referring to horses?) but actually identified the poster as an asshole. A prospective roommate, whether black, arab, or simply non-bigoted asshole is saved the time and trouble of responding to the ad. Everyone wins.

If this was a realtor or a property manager, the matter is different. That very clearly is illegal bias but the blame is not on craigslist but the party posting the ad. As a public message board, craigslist is in an interesting gray area. Though the offending messages can be taken down when noticed, it is a free forum that should remain open to ads of all sorts. The suit seems excessive to me and could easily do more harm to the people it wishes to protect. If it succeeds, craigslist would either have to shut down or start charging for its services. Sure, no more bigoted ads but also no more free classifieds for people looking for housing, goods, jobs or "casual encounters," services open to everyone from the reddest necked inbred to the most pimpenest gangsta.