Negative Effects Of Freedom Of Speech

According to “Freedom of Speech” by Gerald Leinwand, Abraham Lincoln once asked, “Must a government, of necessity, be too strong for the liberties of its people, or too weak to maintain its own existence (7)?” This question is particularly appropriate when considering what is perhaps the most sacred of all our Constitutionally guaranteed rights, freedom of expression. Lincoln knew well the potential dangers of expression, having steered the Union through the bitterly divisive Civil War, but he held the Constitution dear enough to protect its promises whenever possible (8).

Free speech is important. It enables humans to openly express any thoughts, opinions, or ideas one may have without the risk of government oppression or censorship. Social media act as platforms that promote free speech, as social media allow any person’s thoughts, opinions, or ideas to be shared with the world at the simple click of an “enter” key. However, there do exist limitations to free speech when threats or hate speech become involved. In these instances, ramifications and legal actions can be taken as a means of combating verbal threats and hateful statements. With this in mind, the Elonis v. United States sase is of particular notoriety due to its exemplification of both the role in which social media play in free speech, as well

The First Amendment, freedom of speech, has proven to have made a tremendous impact on our history and the course we have taken. Our country has been transformed throughout history to appreciate the different cultures, religions, and traditions; from a simple act as speaking up to what we think is right we have seen our nation grow and prosper. As citizens, we are entitled to express our opinions and this right must be respected. However, we have taken advantage of this amendment. Nowadays, freedom of speech has become more destructive than supportive. Freedom of speech means giving everyone a chance to speak up; this does not give us the right to harm other individuals.

The founding fathers of this nation didn’t always have this luxury of right. In the colonial era freedom of speech was a notable freedom granted that many nations didn’t have at that time. With Europe in the struggle for dominance and absolutism being overthrown with democracy, the populous struggled to have their voice heard. The masses was censored in many cases with the threat of death or imprisonment. In the United States, it was an inalienable right to be heard and offer differences of opinion. But during this time United States citizen had limitations on this freedom as well. It

As an American citizen and a late bloomer to the political arena in the United States, I find myself arriving in an disheartening and frightening environment. Where I have suddenly awoken in a dis-utopian world of money, power and greed, where the rich elites of the population has all the power to speak up. Where money has become more out-spoken and heard than actual dialog, while the majority of the population remains silenced through underfunded attempts to express their views. Giving money the potency of free speech enables only the people with a financial mouth to resonate loud enough to be heard. Presidents, Senators, Legislators and House of Representative members are involved in the process of making policies and laws, who are

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects freedom of speech among other valued standards. The First Amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceable to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances” (U. S. Constitution). What does it mean by “Congress shall make no law…abridging freedom of speech?” The framers of the Constitution held the rights to free speech in such utmost regard that they deliberately chose to make it a First Amendment right.

By the year of 1791, when the First Amendment was ratified, the idea of “freedom of speech” was so widely accepted that it became the primary, and a very important issue in the amendment. “Freedom of press” came with it to insure that the written and printed as well as oral communication was protected: “Congress shall make no

The 1st amendment, to many of us, separates this country from all others. Within the 1st amendment is a valuable phrase: “The United States Constitution prohibits the making of any law” that abridged “the freedom of speech”(First Amendment). In Bhagwat’s

A. Federalism impacts freedom of speech in a positive way by allowing people to use pure speech or symbolic speech to express how they feel, without getting in . As a matter of fact, a great example of this would be gangster rap back in the late 80's. The perception of rap music still controversial by the media, politicians, and others criticizing the dramatic, violent, and often antisocial imagery that rap music sometimes embodies.( Schneider, C. 2011)

“Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.” These words were spoken by Benjamin Franklin, one of our nation’s founding fathers, when the United States was still a newly independent country. Free speech, which is defined as the right to express any opinion in public without censorship or restraint by the government, is a subject that is still present in the minds of many people today. At one extreme of the spectrum is a group of folks that do not care the slightest bit about free speech issues and at another end is a group of people who will vehemently fight to protect their right to free speech. In a middle ground, like most peoples’ stance, lay a large group of

The fight for Freedom of Speech began over two thousand years ago during the time of Socrates and other methodical thinkers. Back then, free thinkers were not allowed to express their ideas if it went against the common religion of the government. As history continued, progressively more scholars and free thinkers questioned the religious governments. This led to the separation of the church and the state. When writing the US constitution, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, America’s founding

In an ever changing society, it is common to see new policies and laws popping up left and right, but unbeknownst to many, there is an agenda being pushed by those in power to sway the American people through new practices. As a result, the freedoms granted to every American are threatened in an attempt to control the population. Control is the power to influence other people’s thinking and the power to pacify those who voice opposition. In America, the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech and the press, is currently being targeted and undermined through recent laws and societal practices in an attempt to control the population. It is important for the people to recognize and stand against this, or else, we all risk losing our

Throughout American history, limitations on Free Speech have become a highly controversial topic, that have resulted in numerous landmark Supreme Court cases. Freedom of Speech is a fundamental right bestowed to all Americans by the First Amendment. In 1791, after much discussion and disputes, Antifederalists were successful in adopting the first ten amendments, known as the “Bill of Rights” to the Constitution. Antifederalists eagerly fought for the Bill of Rights to be included within the Constitution because they feared the Federal Government would grow too powerful, similar to a totalitarian or dictatorship form of leadership after prior experience with the British King. Due to the Constitution is a living document, various alterations and amendments have been added, which reflect the time period and society as a whole.

Freedom of speech had a link of positive impacts to the world. One positive impact would be the citizens questioning the government about their personal interests and opinion on free speech. This means that before freedom of speech was questioned, many citizens did not have a voice. The government was not concerned with increasing individual’s voices based on personal opinions and beliefs. When citizens began to question the government, the government had not one motive behind not giving individuals the opportunity to speak freely. This arouse more questioning and thoughts amongst citizens and government officials. The United States implemented the first amendment which is applied to all state and local governments. No one is restricted or

The freedom to be able to express your own opinion is an ideology that is supported by many, however the act of promoting harm or hate is where freedom should be restricted. Freedom of speech is a right for citizens of many countries, but these citizens may agree or disagree on what is allowed to be expressed. Many people share the belief that they can say anything they want because their freedom entitles them to express any opinion they would like. In contrast, many people believe that you shouldn’t be able to say anything you want and that there should be restrictions on the type of things that you can say. In the novel On Liberty by John Stuart Mill, Mill argues that freedom of speech should be limited if and when it is harming other people in the process. Mill explains this argument by stating that silencing an unpopular opinion is unjustifiable because in order to successfully express your opinion, you must listen to the criticism. I agree with Mill’s position regarding freedom of speech based on the fact that he doesn’t support hate speech, and that there should be reasonable limits on freedom of speech in order to have an ideal democratic society. This essay will outline the justifications for Mill’s argument surrounding freedom of speech, the limitations that Mill believes should be set on freedom of speech as well as the assumptions that his argument depends on, and finally my personal viewpoint on Mill’s argument. Freedom of speech is a right that should be guaranteed to every citizen around the world, however when this speech negatively affects or harms other humans in the process, it is thereby considered hate speech which must be condemned.