We don’t agree on the virtue of free speech anymore, and that’s a problem.
Freedom of speech is a key principle of the American founding, and Americanism more broadly. It originates from the crucial insight of the Declaration of Independence, that our rights come from God, that our rights are “natural,” not derived from the benevolence of the government. Practically speaking, the free speech principle serves as a bulwark against tyranny, and as a public “pressure release valve” that effectively mitigates the feelings of resentment that a silenced people would feel. It is a defining principle both because it is right, and because societal harmony is derived from the ability of everyone to be heard.
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