Free Speech : Freedom Of Speech

1. The measure of a great society is the ability of its citizens to tolerate the viewpoints of those with whom they disagree. As Voltaire once said, “I may disagree with what you have to say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it” (Columbia). This right to express one's opinion can be characterized as “freedom of speech.” The concept of “freedom of speech” is a Constitutional right in the United States, guaranteed under the First Amendment to the Constitution:

Freedom of speech includes the freedom not to agree, not to listen and not to support one’s own antagonists. A “right” does not include the material implementation of that right by other men; it includes only the freedom to earn that implementation by one’s own effort (n.p).

Free speech is the backbone that holds democracy together.  Without a free speech, ideas would not be challenged, governments would not be kept in check, and citizens would not be free.  John Stuart Mill said once that, “If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person then he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.”( Roleff, 21). The right to free speech is essential to “egalitarian democracy,”(Tsesis) however, this right is not absolute and must be limited in certain situations.

Across the globe, freedom of speech has become a rather controversial issue. This is shown more and more every day, from the Charlie Hebdo incident, to North Korea’s reaction to the American film The Interview. Cases like these show that freedom of speech has come to be seen more as a political right rather than a moral right. The theories of Kant and Mill have varying views on such matter. Before we can conclude whether freedom of speech is a moral right or not, we must first understand what it is.

Freedom of speech has been part of a controversial debate for many decades. Whether or not limitations should be placed on people’s freedom to voice their opinions has become a compelling discussion. The fact is that people feel that they have the right to full freedom of speech under the first Amendment. But the dangers of speaking ones mind did not present itself when the first Amendment was first created and now more than ever many view their freedom to speak as a tool to hurt others. So there should be limits on our freedom of speech because actions may speak louder than words but words have the power to hurt more.

The American lifestyle has always included the freedom to speak freely. This freedom, granted by the 1st amendment, can be viewed as the cornerstone of the American freedom since without it most of the other freedoms Americans enjoy become less useful or even obsolete. The issue that many find with free speech however is that everyone must have it even if that person holds an opposing opinion. This mutual respect is the foundation for civil discussions and debates that shape the country and even the world. However many Americans either no longer know how to discuss matters civilly or simply no longer want to hold important discussions this way. The population of people that believe this wishes to stop civil discussion and instead have only one belief that every person should share as being true. I therefore hypothesize that since many Americans are coming to believe this, free speech and the freedom of belief are no longer freedoms that Americans value, and that the right to free speech is under attack by people living in America who believe that it should no longer exist.

In conclusion, “Freedom of speech is the right to articulate one's opinions and ideas without fear of government retaliation or censorship, or societal sanction.”( Freedom of speech

1William Jefferson Mr. ArmstrongEnglish Comp 223 September 2017Speak No EvilFreedom to the people has been Americas greatest accomplishment, the border placed between the lines of freedom are not clarified. Freedom of speech is the right for the American people to express their opinion without any intervention from the government. Freedom of speech is not a privilege, it is our general right for all people regardless of their religion, nationality, or race. The restrictions for free speech is a current event that keeps the American people questioning why is it even necessary.In addition, this argument is seen from two different viewpoints. First, who agree with the fact that our freedom of speech should have restrictions to keep others from expressing their opinion to avoid an argument and criticism. On social media, people around the world have used social media to spread hateful slurs or clichés to express their opinion. Whether its racist,

Freedom of speech immediately brings up in mind the First Amendment. The First Amendment protects the freedom of speech, meaning we are able to express freely in any form of communication with no worries of getting in trouble. For example, we have the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances freely. There have been some conflicts with the First Amendment and censoring materials. But problems with freedom of speech are not as bad as other areas in the world “One example is the ‘so-called right to be forgotten,’ which allows negative information to be deleted from the Internet. Abrams stresses that even repugnant statements are more broadly protected in the U.S. speech than under many European democracies.” (Abrams, 66).

Freedom of speech is critical considering that people shouldn’t be fearful to show their thoughts and beliefs. We live in a country that has freedom of speech. For this, we are very fortunate because throughout history and even today many people were and are not as fortunate to have the luxury of expressing themselves without having to worry of variant forms

One of the most difficult issues in working out a system of free expression arises out of the need to reconcile society's often competing commitments to freedom of speech and individual dignity. Many times it does not fit well with either side, so when it comes to creating laws like the First Commandment, it must be direct and accurate. According with Lukianoff, president and CEO of FIRE, the Foundation for Individuals Rights in Education, in his essay the concept freedom of speech really means and how is affecting other countries humans right. American speech laws differ from others countries by been considered radical and to highly offensive.

The modern right to freedom of speech has been under threat since the moment it was first won. Today the challenges from those who claim to support that same freedom are yet to seek and restrict it in practice.

On this world today free speech has been a standout amongst the most battled after rights in the United Conditions of America. The right to speak freely was received on December 15, 1791. The right to speak freely is secured by the main correction in the Constitution of United States, which is the privilege to explain one’s suppositions and thoughts without dread of government countering or control, or societal endorse. Free discourse is imperative in the public arena since we are allowed to create as individuals and end up noticeably mindful of what is happening around us. The right to speak freely played an extremely vital part in how and our identity today and is the principle motivation behind why we

Many American citizens today widely embrace freedom of speech as an “absolute right” to publish or speak their own thoughts. They treat it as a way of life. Freedom of expression, which encompasses the five freedoms granted by the First Amendment, allow “an individual or group of individuals to express their beliefs, thoughts, ideas, and emotions about different issues free from government censorship.” While freedom of speech has a largely broad definition, there are a few exceptions that do not constitute as free speech: fighting words, defamation, and blackmail (First Amendment Center). In previous centuries, however, the

The purpose of this report is to identify how “Freedom of Speech” can affect people and inform how the freedom of speech movement started. The questions that I want to answer are how people are affected by freedom of speech online, how freedom of speech affects a society and how the freedom of speech movement started. Freedom of speech has played a major role in history and has been important to the building of our society. There have been many different ways people have taken freedom of speech to the extreme and this is intended to ask ourselves the importance of these free speeches.