The Importance Of Freedom Of Speech

It can be argued that freedom of speech should be allowed in society for two main reasons. Firstly, freedom of speech is regarded as a basic human right. It is stated in the Universal Declaration

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 is the balance between personal liberty & government authority. Free speech started & began when the settlers came over to the United States from Europe & made the original British colonies (Freedom Of Speech, 2014). Because of this right being made, having the liberty of free speech means that an individual or the press have the absolute right to talk or express their opinions freely (Freedom Of Speech, 2014).

The right to think is our Freedom of Thought. Freedom of thought is the freedom to have any thought one wants without censorship. So essentially, freedom of thought is to be free in one’s mind, while freedom of expression concerns both yourself and others who hear your expressed thoughts.

The modern American conception of freedom of speech comes from the principles of freedom of the press, and freedom of religion as they developed in England, starting in the seventeenth century. The arguments of people like John Milton on the importance of an unlicensed press, and of people like John Locke on religious toleration, were all the beginning for the idea of the “freedom of speech”.

In the United States all citizens have a guaranteed right to express their thoughts and ideas to a certain extent that is. Under the First Amendment in the Constitution it states that the people have the ability to speak freely. Free speech is a concept that has different variations as to how expansive it should be and can be discussed by four individuals with differing theories on the justification for this right. The four theories are the Utility of Truth by Mill, Democratic Self Government by Alexander Meicklejohn, Individual Self-Realization by Martin Redish, and the Mixed by Thomas Emerson, which all highlight the importance of free speech, but grasp the value of free speech differently.

Freedom of Speech is one of the most important factors of our Constitution. In my opinion, one of the most defining points, what makes our country, our country. For example, without freedom of speech, we wouldn’t be able to read so many opinions on important matters and would be forced to think one thing even if we believed it was false. During the Vietnam War, people were put in jail for refusing to go to war, like Muhammad Ali. It was people’s freedom of speech to not welcome the soldiers back, their individual right to not support the war. But, they still had consequences for their actions, even if it was their right. Martin Luther, Malcolm X, JFK, and many others used their individual rights, their freedom of speech, to protest for equal

Freedom of speech is perhaps the most precious tenets of liberal democracies accorded to the citizens of the free world. The United States, and the rest of the Western society is known to be the cradle of democratic principles, and this can be evidenced by the level of freedom accorded to the citizens of the United States and the West in terms of speech. The freedom of speech gives an individual an opportunity to speak his or her mind and also give his or her opinion, sometimes on very sensitive topics, without any fear of reprisal (Melkonian, 2012).

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

Besides the era of Socrates, freedom of speech also took place in other decades that has trailed to impact us today. A specific doctrine to help guide freedom of speech was the British Bill of Rights and the Declaration of the Rights of Man, which was written by the National Assembly of the French Revolution in 1789. This was aimed to stop monarchy, and help use the principles of Enlightenment into the picture. The Age of Enlightenment is when they began to put reason into their lives. It was no longer just one way or no way, people finally put their own opinions into

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.

As an American in today's society, freedom is greatly valued. There are many types of freedoms allowed in this country such as, freedom of speech and freedom of religion. With freedom of speech, you are allowed to voice your opinions through verbal or nonverbal actions. This is not only limited to the speaker it also allows the listener

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

America's first amendment which consists of the rights that Americans have and one of those rights being Freedom of speech. Today, many Americans are taking advantage of that right and the poster children taking advantage are the NFL players. They are kneeling during the national anthem and are claiming it's because of racial issues. Americans are saying otherwise and consider the act to be disrespectful to those who fought for the rights of Americans Citizens. People on the defensive side of the spectrum are saying that it's an act of freedom of speech. Americans should stand during the national anthem because it's disrespectful not and it's a slap in the face to those who fought for their fellow Americans freedoms.

English philosopher, John Stuart Mill believed that every man has a right to think what he feels and say what he thinks, even if it is different than what others believe to be true. One of the most complex things in establishing a government is deciding how much freedom the citizens in a society should have. Throughout history, many different types of governments have been formed ranging from North Korea’s dictatorships to the United States democratic government. In societies that have democratic governments such as the United States and many other Western European countries, the citizens say what they think. In addition, these citizens have a high degree of freedom of thought. Although these are both very important to have in a democratic society because the rights allow people to express themselves for who you truly are, there is a difference between freedom of speech and freedom of thought. Freedom of speech is a public matter and freedom of thought is a private matter. John Stuart Mill writes on the importance of freedom of speech and freedom of thought in his book On Liberty. .