When our Politicians call for Censure — it becomes Freedom of whose speech?
Since Europe began to slide down the slippery slope of designating specific types of speech, hate speech — We have seen a rise in the number of American citizens who believe that specific types of speech should not only be shut down — but specifically controlled and forbidden.
The curiousness of these calls for the shutting down of specific types of speech — oddly come from the left — who only a few decades ago were critical, of a mere mention of the FBI.
Today a number of groups — ranging from Social Media platforms to prominent Democrat politicians to ANTIFA (a designated domestic terror group) Have called on limitations of speech from right wing, far right — and what they consider to be white supremacist elements of society.
The challenge with the targeting specific types of speech — while offering protection to other types of speech, is — that it parallels historical moves.
Historical moves we saw in Europe, that led to nothing more than Fascism.
That was in WW2, where the censorship of speech was followed by the censorship of guns — and subsequently the censorship and elimination of certain segments of the population — an event you may remember as the Holocaust.
Now the past century is rife with holocausts and genocides that occurred across the globe — whether the Jews in Germany or the Cambodian Genocide of Pol Pot.
However — All of these horrors began with restrictions on speech that demonized one group while lauding another.
Over the course of a few years it quickly allowed for partisanship to turn to certain types of speech into a defined poison.
In America — going back to the creation of the Constitution, and prior to that, with the Articles of Confederation — the intent of our founders, was to ensure — that regardless of perspective, all people were allowed to articulate all positions without restriction.
Why? Because when you begin suppressing speech — it is a very slippery slope by which you empower hidden communities to develop voices of sedition.
Further, one of the most American of activities – that of discourse — becomes moot - when you eliminate the opportunity for one side to present their perspectives, ideas, ideals or arguments.
Now, recently, #Facebook and a number of social media platforms including #Reddit and #Twitter have engaged and the censorship and deplatforming of entire segments of conservative and alt right voices — from online social media discourse.
What’s more troubling than the deplatforming of Select right wing voices, is the speed with which the internet has forgotten that the deplatforming (or removal) happened.
While this in and of itself is problematic — eliminating a number voices from the conversation — What’s more problematic is the recent follow-up from certain democratic political leaders.
Florida Rep. (D) Frederica Wilson Recently spoke — demanding that criticism of Democrats made publicly, should face prosecution.
In a world, where entire arguments online and within social media become negated or obviated simply by one person calling someone a Nazi or a Libtard… this is dangerous rhetoric.
The image above is relatively indicative of how the mainstay of Americans feel about the extremes on the right or left.
And, while social media platforms themselves may feel the need to sanitize certain voices — they are not constitutionally protected forums.
What representative Wilson is suggesting is, that both public and social media forums, places where parody and criticism — Elements of the public and the press that and go back to generations — exist, should now criminalize certain criticism.
This is a dangerous perspective.
The only thing that uniquely makes all of us Americans is the Constitution of the United States — which stipulates that you have free and clear ability to speak your mind, however you want, regardless of how reprehensible someone else might find it.
We are the only country in the world where as a citizen — you are open to speak your mind and criticize or comment or prostelyze on whatever and to whomever you would like.
And while we do have certain restrictions such as those that are linked to hate speech which results in hate crimes — (Providing they were chaperones… for security 😉) — you could have a member of ANTIFA, a member of the KKK, a member of the southern poverty law center, a Democrat, a Republican, a Black Panther, a Chicano activist, an LGBTQ activist, a member of AIPAC and a Muslim Imam — All in the same room and saying whatever they please to one another.
And all of these conversations would be protected by the Constitution of United States.
So before you try to silence censure another American, within the context of any political conversation, whether it is in regards to our President, an extreme left or extreme right political view, LGBTQ or Religious views or anything else — consider that your right to have these conversations is protected.
It is also an opportunity for you to open a dialogue to understand someone across the aisle, across races, another perspective or across cultures. This is something that is not only uniquely American but something that we all should probably become more engaged in.
Because at the end of the day regardless of what your perspective is — we’re all Americans and we’re all in this together.
