Freedom of Speech Essay - 1869 Words

Freedom of speech, ones right to say what they please without fear of being punished, is among one of the most treasured freedoms throughout America. Protected by the relevant constitutional provision, this freedom was also deemed most important by the founders. The first inhabitants of North American colonies, whom were controlled by the British, did not have the legal right to speak out against government policies or issues such as unfair laws and taxes, English speech regulations were quite restrictive. After several prosecutions of speaking out against the government, the trial of John Peter Zenger, who was convicted of opposing the government, marked the beginning of a greater tolerance of free speech. In response to the†¦show more content†¦First, â€Å"Education requires that ideas be freely available for discussion and evaluation. Therefore, free speech is the linchpin of any society† (Luft ). Here Luft claims that the free flow of knowledge allows for the development of a civil society since everyone can voice their opinion, there are no ideas being rejected some of which could help contribute to the goodness of a society. Of course not all ideas are heard, but those that are draw attention to certain aspects of society, which can end up benefiting the common good. As stated before, researchers think that protecting freedom of speech will contribute positively to a society because many people feel strongly that â€Å"Without freedom of speech, newspapers would not be able to inform the public freely about elected officials, proposed bills, and national and foreign policy†(American Government ). This is what the knowledge of a society is all about-keeping the public well informed. Individuals gain knowledge through the destruction of bad ideas or even good ideas. One can build one another person’s idea, without having to worry if it’s not deemed positive by the leader. Then through the process of everyone voic ing their opinions, knowledge is eventually gained which plays a big role inShow MoreRelatedSpeech : Freedom Of Speech1364 Words   |  6 Pages Even though freedom of speech can be tricky, understanding what can be said under the first amendment is key. This will give you more confidence when you re talking about current events, it ll inhibit social interaction, but the biggest reason of all is understanding your rights will keep you out of jail. Even the supreme court struggles to determine what exactly constitutes protected speech. When trying to see if your covered by the first amendment, certain questions have to be displayed. AreRead MoreSpeech On Freedom Of Speech1484 Words   |  6 Pages Abby Koopmann Ethics Freedom of Speech Professor Hunt Culver Stockton College Freedom of Speech Americans have many freedoms that people in other countries can only wish they had. Just imagine a life where you could possibly be killed for speaking your mind and stating your opinion, other countries are living lives like that. According to Katy Davis, The United States ratified the first amendment on December 15th 1791 (Davis, n.d). We as a country don’t know where the governmentRead MoreFreedom Of Speech : Speech1105 Words   |  5 Pages Freedom of Speech Freedom of Speech, part of the First Amendment, is a privileged right that should not be taken lightly. The Milo Bill is said to protect students’ right to their freedom of speech on school grounds. It was introduced at Tennessee’s State House and is named after Milo Yiannopoulos, a British public speaker who made a career out of â€Å"trolling† liberals and gained publicity for uncalled-for acts, such as racist and harassing comments on Twitter, which got him banned from the socialRead MoreSpeech : The Freedom Of Speech Essay1624 Words   |  7 PagesCitizens of the United States are privileged to the freedom of speech under the First Amendment, but the constitutional limits of the freedom of speech have been questioned on multiple occasions. Citizens of the United States have called upon the Supreme Court numerous times to interpret the meaning of the First Amendment, and the court has censored some forms of speech such as obscene speech --which has been pr ohibited--and indecent or pornographic speech--which has been regulated (Barrett, 1999). PublicRead MoreSpeech On Freedom Of Speech3937 Words   |  16 PagesZhiyuan Li Philosophy 2367 Freedom of Speech A couple of months ago, University of Chicago’s president Robert J. Zimmerin expressed his concern about freedom of speech on campus in a Wall Street Journal article: Free speech is at risk at the very institution where it should be assured: the university †¦ Invited speakers are disinvited because a segment of a university community deems them offensive, while other orators are shouted down for similar reasons. Demands are made to eliminate readings thatRead MoreFree Speech : Freedom Of Speech1403 Words   |  6 PagesFREE SPEECH 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 veryRead MoreFreedom Of The Media And Freedom Of Speech1540 Words   |  7 Pageswhen Socrates was forced to drink poison for his â€Å"corruption of youth† (Mette), which can be seen as silencing one man for the betterment of everyone, but there is always an ample amount of opinions on such a controversial topic as Freedom of the press, or Freedom of Speech. Many nations today believe that very strict and regulated system of governing the media and entertainment is the best answer, such as China, w here â€Å"censorship was considered a legitimate instrument for regulating the moral and politicalRead MoreFreedom of Speech3842 Words   |  16 PagesFreedom of speech Freedom of speech  is the freedom to speak freely without  censorship. The synonymous term  freedom of expression  is sometimes used to indicate not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used. In practice, the right to freedom of speech is not absolute in any country and the right is commonly subject to limitations, such as on hate speech. The right to freedom of speech is recognized as a  humanRead MoreFree Speech Or Freedom Of Speech Essay911 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction America is known as The Land of Freedom, basically we are entitled for legal freedom to do whatever we wanted to. However, the freedom of speech has been challenged by many university students and educators recently. In their argument, they believe that free speech has triggered students’ unhappiness and jeopardize campus’ safety. What is the free speech or freedom of speech? According to dictionary, freedom of speech is the right of people to express their opinions publicly withoutRead MoreFreedom Of Speech : Speech And Expression898 Words   |  4 PagesWhen the words, â€Å"freedom of speech† are uttered today, it brings about much conflict and tension. The vagueness of the First Amendment is a pretty good indication of how different times were back when the Constitution and everything along with it were created. Back then, all the Founding Fathers wanted was the establish a democracy using the lessons they had learned from the tyranny of the British King. T hey wanted more freedom and power to the people. In the modern era, everything has changed, and