There has been lots of controversy about freedom of speech and government censorship over the last few months.
“Freedom of speech has to do with your ability to express yourself with some restrictions, however you want,” AP government teacher Andy Wiggins said.
Freedom of speech is one of the most important and conversed amendments in the United States Constitution.
“The government wants you to be able to say the things or express the things that you want to say and express, but I also want to put a little bit of a limitation [as to] not create uncomfortable, volatile, unsafe situations,” Wiggins said.
Freedom of speech protects you and allows you to peacefully express and publish your thoughts and opinions.
Jimmy Kimmel’s show was temporarily pulled off the air due to comments he made about conservative political activist Charlie Kirk’s assination.
“If ABC, which is a private company, decides [independently] that they don’t like Jimmy Kimmel,. [As in] they don’t like what he’s doing and they don’t want to have him on their network anymore, they are perfectly within their right to do that,” Wiggins said.
ABC has the power to make choices on what it is broadcasting and how it is presented. It is only a problem when the government tries to influence a private company.
Some Americans believe that the United States government put pressure on ABC to remove the show, but both the President and press secretary Karoline Leavitt have denied these allegations.
“As soon as elements of the American government began to put threats and incentives on ABC [or any other network] to act in a specific way, that became a threat to our freedom of speech protocols in the United States,” Wiggins said.
On a similar note, there has also been controversy over freedom of speech with some school districts banning certain books and forms of expression.
“There is a balance between freedom and order. The idea that a school district would have some policies in place that limited exposure by students and staff to certain materials would probably be [constitutional],” Wiggins said.
Keeping schools a safe and respectful environment is important. That said, the banning of books becomes potentially problematic when it restricts certain views and opinions.
“If instead, in a school district, you begin to notice the limitations and the censorship against specific kinds of voice and points of view, then that’s a problem,” Wiggins said.
As debates over freedom of speech continue in schools, media and within the government, it is clear that the First Amendment shapes everyday life for Americans. From determining which books are available on library shelves or utilized within school curriculum, Americans still work to define what freedom of expression looks like in a changing world.
Freedom of speech isn’t just a right, it’s a responsibility. Knowing where expression ends and harm begins is something that Americans continue to navigate. Freedom of speech is a living and evolving part of American democracy.
