Facebook claims that a Buddhist woman was raped by Muslims; more than 600 officers have been sent to control the crowd of 300 Buddhists. Muslim shops were damaged and the windows of a mosque were smashed.106As discussed, Facebook is influential as a news source in Myanmar as information shared online is considered to be more credible for many citizens than information from the government. This particularly applies to the youth who are more likely to be Facebook users; consequently, this makes hate speech more affective long term. The attitudes and beliefs of young people are important for they are the minds of future governments and political figures. Benesch’s framework to assess the danger of hate speech allows us to map out the degree of Wirathu’s influence on his audience and how he has manipulated social circumstances to evoke emotional responses. This is useful to reflect on as it brings to attention the need for initiatives that take into consideration the tensions that Wirathu plays on. Conclusion One of the most significant points that comes out of this analysis that hate speech can play a significant role in the dehumanization of Muslims. Being continuously exposed to misinformation about Islam, which serves to paint Muslims as the enemy, can make society more tolerant of that group’s persecution. Painting them as criminals and rapists, as Wirathu does, portrays them as human rights abusers, which in turn supposedly forfeits their own human rights. As a result of this dehumanization, Muslims are deprived of what Waldron calls their right to dignity, and are not considered equal citizens. Another incredibly important point for this study is that Facebook is considered a valuable source for information for youth in Myanmar. Therefore, misinformation about Muslims is easily disseminated and believed, particularly, as noted by 106 Mezzofiore, G., (2014) ’Wirathu's 'Buddhist Woman Raped' Facebook Post Stokes Anti-Muslim Violence in Mandalay’, International Business Times, available at: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/wirathus-buddhist-woman-raped-facebook-post-stokes-anti-muslimviolence-mandalay-1455069, [November 2015]. - 46 -