The Importance Of Freedom Of Speech

Established in the Constitution, written in 1787, the Constitution guaranteed the citizens of the United States the rights of freedom of speech, religion, press, and assembly in the First Amendment etched in the Bill of Rights. Throughout history, many Americans have experienced restrictions of freedom of speech during the United States earliest years as a country. John Adams, the second president of the United States, established the Alien and Sedition Act, which impeded upon Free Speech by restricting citizens from criticizing the government and president of their actions. Therefore, through the 1st Amendment, citizens should remain protected of their liberties in every aspect until they confiscate others of their liberties, and it should protect hate speech unless an individual’s liberties are in danger or under threat. The Supreme Court should define hate speech as threats that present another individual in obvious peril.

As American citizens we are blessed with rights that many other countries are yet to afford; of those, one of the most influential and powerful is arguably the right to freedom of speech. Its gravity is compounded when one thinks of the many American soldiers who have sacrificed their lives fighting to protect this. The limits of freedom of speech have come into question recently with the rise of the Alternative Right, Nazis, the KKK, and White Supremacists, with some cases turning lethal as witnessed in Charlottesville, North Carolina. Though the importance of having freedom of speech is very evident, the question arises of how far do individual rights extend before infringing on the rights of others. Many argue on how political correctness does more harm than good and is an obstacle in the way of intellectual debate, though this argument has no merit. Many universities and colleges are implementing hate speech codes, which are limits on certain words from being used on campuses. Rules such as hate speech codes are a step in the right direction to counteract much of the verbal expression of racism that takes place on campus.

The first amendment of the United States’ Bill of Rights states “Congress shall make no law... prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech,”. Freedom of speech tends to be the most appreciated part of this amendment, while also causing the most anger. Most hate speech is protected under it, causing loads of controversy of the years. If the speech is not active fighting words threatening the livelihood of somebody, you’re allowed to say whatever you want. A landmark case in confirming this was the 2010 case of Snyder v. Phelps; the fight between the family of a soldier killed on duty, and America’s most hated family.

Freedom of speech is a right protected by the First Amendment. According to the administrative office of the United States Courts (n.d.), the First Amendment states that, “Congress shall make no law... abridging freedom of speech.” Freedom of speech is arguably one of the most cherished American values in the First Amendment. As defined by an online unabridged Dictionary (n.d.), The rights covered by freedom of speech include the right to express opinions publicly without governmental interference. You are wrong when you say that we should shut down news outlets when they broadcast information that you do not like because freedom of speech applies to news outlets.

The First Amendment of the U.S. constitution states “Congress shall make no law [...] abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” However, the right to freedom of speech has limits, including violence, inciting a riot, libel or slander and yelling fire in a theatre. At a private company, such as the NFL, there are even more limits to this freedom, depending on the organization’s terms and conditions and any contracts that must be signed by members.

For many students, school provides the first opportunity to test boundaries, beliefs, and self-expression. The First Amendment safeguards the rights of every American, including students, to speak freely. After all, students do not “shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate” (Tinker v. Des Moines). Additional Supreme Court decisions, such as Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier and Bethel School District v. Fraser, have further clarified that the right to free speech and expression can sometimes be subordinate to achieve legitimate educational goals. Schools are not similar to that of a public park where someone can stand on a bench and holler. Rather, the right to free speech should be implemented in ways that do not interfere with schools’ educational mission. In fact, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that public school officials cannot censor students unless school officials have a “reasonable expectation” that the expression will cause a material and substantial disruption of school activities or invade the rights of others. In the school setting, administration must look diligently at the details of a situation before making decisions when one group’s right to free speech begins impeding on another group’s right to free speech.

Censorship harms society. “The Coddling of the American Mind” written by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt emphasizes that over sensitivity, microaggressions and trigger warnings suppress freedom of speech. The article “The Indispensable Opposition”, written by Walter Lippmann supports that when people do not take opposing views into account it deviates from the real truth and suppresses freedom of speech. “The Talk” by Dana Canedy conveys the sad truth of the sensitivity of the microaggressions and trigger warnings involving the black culture. This has lead to the pertinent discussion she has with her black son to explain how he must behave in society in order to survive. Most readers will agree that freedom of speech should be absolute, but they might not understand the complexity of the subject, as revealed by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, Walter Lippmann, and Dana Canedy. In fact, the topic is not simply a matter of embracing others views, but a much more complex issue involving acceptance of other cultures.

The first Amendment, one of ten fundamental rights we have as American citizens. It is the right to express any opinion without censorship or restraints. It is a travesty of freedom of speech. A misnomer that falsely empowers citizens with the belief that their opinion and beliefs can be verbalized and listened to without penalty.

The first amendment, freedom of speech comes from the United States Constitution and declares 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 peaceably to assemble”. This means that freedom of speech only prevents government restrictions on speech, not restrictions imposed by private individuals or businesses unless they are acting on behalf of the government. The first amendment claims the right to speak your mind as you please without having to fear repercussions from the government , but exceptions have been created over time, based on certain types of speech and expression, and under different contexts also based on peoples reactions. While freedom of speech in the United States is a right protected by the constitution, these exceptions make that right limited .

The U.S Constitution was written by the framers of America who at the time were predominately white men who owned property, and were considered prestigious citizens who were trusted to set the ground for the daily life of American Citizens. The Constitution was signed on September 17, 1787 (), and created foundational laws which grant basic rights for the people. This provided a means for citizens to know how to conduct themselves in the eyes of the law. The very first Amendment was Freedom of Speech, which is one of the most important amendments. This all included the Freedom of speech, expression, press, assembly and petition. () Freedom of speech stands out as an important essential right to all American citizens, yet lawmakers have stretched the full of extent as to what Freedom of speech really means. The First Amendment symbolizes the actual right of an individual to convey ideas opposed to general views of the collective public, pertaining to areas of religion, speech and expression. This means that an individual should feel free to speak their mind, peacefully protest, as well praise in public without any impeding disruptions.

Our government defines the limits of American society. What we say and do has weak limits that are imposed by the national government, yet what happens if we try to change that? This is possible as history proves it. The United States of America would not exist today if it was not for the revolt against the King of England in the 1700s. Ever since, the freedom of the people to have a say in the government is crucial for the existence of a democracy. In modern times, being able to express an opinion in politics is taken for granted as the government is potent enough to control the lives of thousands in a democratic way. We are struggling with the issue of immigration because many are leaving the decision-making to the hands of lawmakers that have never experienced life at the border or outside of America. To achieve a better understanding of the topic, I have to receive insight from other people.

There is a lot of debate on what type of free speech is protected by the First Amendment of the Constitution. Free speech is a basic right of all Americans, but this right comes with restrictions. In public schools, the school administration sets strict rules and regulations that the students are required to follow in order to keep things running smoothly and not cause a disruption within the school. Based on the school’s rules set for the students, the students at Palmyra Area High School are not permitted to hang a Confederate Flag in the Atrium of the high school because it is a very controversial issue, can and will cause a disruption within the school, and the school has the right to monitor free speech during school hours.

On 1787, the future founding fathers of an ever so influential nation united to write upon a paper the most fundamental document to ever exist that serves as the basis for the entire system of the United States. The United States Constitution, with all of its posterity that ordains a strong union within its members, contains twenty-seven amendments that ensure the basic rights and principles that drive the nation. The first ten of these amendments form what is known to be as the Bill of Rights: basic rights that governmental bodies in the federalist system and all of its citizens abide and live by. Benjamin Franklin, one of the founding fathers, declared that, “Freedom of speech is a principal pillar of a free government: When this support is taken away, the constitution of a free society is dissolved.” And with these words, the First Amendment of the Constitution that protects the freedom of expression and speech was established.

hoose to, this does not, however, mean freedom from consequences. One is still allowed backlash for publishing or saying dangerous, reckless, and or deceitful things.

The First Amendment to the Constitution of The United States of America guarantees the right of free speech to all Americans and allows them to freely and openly express their opinions or beliefs. It allows citizens to openly exercise their chosen religions, utilize various media outlets to speak or comment, and gather in assembly to protest. However, this core belief, that is so integral to American freedom, also has many complications, most notably what do we do with people whose opinions we don’t like? This question becomes particularly difficult for public institutions and especially so for Institutions of learning. Recently the University of Tennessee allowed political commentator Ben Shapiro to speak on campus garnering a lot of support and even more protest. Furthermore, on campuses across the country other highly controversial speakers such as Janet Mock and Milo Yiannopoulos have even been protested to such a degree that they were forced to leave for their own safety or not allowed to speak at all. So, the question again is raised, should these people whose ideas many of us disagree with be allowed to voice their opinions? I believe that these individuals should be allowed to speak and that it is our ethical duty to ensure they have that right no matter how polarizing or disagreeable their opinions are.