Speech Theories: Making a Connection

 

What is it?

Freedom of Speech is the fundamental right of the people that is noted in the first Amendment. It gives people the right to speak about their thoughts and opinions without backlash from the government. There have been times in the past that the government has tried silencing the people, but ultimately failed to do so. There are also times where people have received harsh public backlash for their words and received consequences. Throughout this post, I will be exploring the different sides of free speech and how they have shaped the world today.

Speech Theories

First let's focus on the speech theories that will be focused on during this discussion. The first is Individual Self-Fulfillment, where freedom of speech can lead to identity and agency for a person. People are capable of expressing themselves how they want and are capable of fulfilling their internal need to express themselves. 

The second is Promote Tolerance, where people speak out what is wrong or note when someone says something wrong. This creates an environment where hate can't just be spread among people without any repercussions. This is where society creates their own personal system of punishment for people who are directly hateful. These two theories are what resonate with me the most and what will be focused  on during this post.

Individual Self-Fulfillment

Self-Actualization is an idea noted in Marlow's hierarchy of needs. It is the highest point of human development and people begin to focus on their own potential and identity. Without free speech, it would be impossible to reach this goal since part of the self-fulfillment is expressing yourself without backlash or restraint. There are many past and modern examples that demonstrate this idea.

Many court cases can be noted where freedom of speech was questioned then ruled in favored for the people who were speaking for their personal beliefs. Tinker v. Des Moines (1969) demonstrated the right for students to express their dislike for the war. Citizens United v. FEC (2010) demonstrated the right for corporations to present campaigns for people they personally believed in. While being two completely different topics, the same theory applies. There is a sense of self-fulfillment by being able to express their thoughts and opinions without being held back from the government or systems.

A more modern example can be seen through social media. Many people use these platforms to express themselves and gain a sense of fulfillment through the views or likes on their post. While this is not the most healthy approach to this theory, it still applies the same principles. Social media has taken over everyday life and is one of the main sources of news and personal ideas to spread. While there are cases where social medias have deleted or banned certain people for their speech, it is mostly unrestricted and you can find almost anything on it. It truly is the balance between both good and bad speech.

Promote Tolerance

One of the easiest examples of this theory to understand is the Civil Rights Movement. As many people know, the Civil Rights Movement was a pivotal point in American history because it spoke against the blatant racism that was occurring towards African Americans. People like Martin Luther King and Rosa Parks demonstrated their right to speak or act against the system put in place that was against them. Even though it was years after the Civil War, racism was a part of society. 

SCOTAS cases like Brown v. Board of Education (1954) supported this theory. Even after the Civil Rights Movement, there were still evidence of racism found in society. Luckily, present day has more repercussions for racism or open hate but it is not a flawless system.

There are cases that ruled against free speech but for the safety of the people rather than to just silence a particular person. For example, Schenck v. United States (1919) was ruled for the protection of the people and the government since Schenck's free speech preposed violence. 

Final Thoughts

Overall, I believe that the freedom to express yourself and the freedom to speak out against what is wrong is a fundamental part about being human. Without this right, we wouldn't be able to live to our potential and fulfill our needs to express who we are. It is a complicated world but being able to speak about it makes it a little better.