Free speech is a fundamental part of the American Experiment
As American as the Constitution
After the framing of the Constitution of the United States was completed in 1787, a bitter argument followed over its ratification. The earliest political factions in the United States were the Federalists — who favored a stronger federal government — and the Anti-Federalists, who opposed such. The Anti-Federalists believed that the Constitution that had emerged at Philadelphia gave too much to the Federalists and threatened to block ratification. The dispute was resolved with the passage of the Bill of Rights, ten amendments to the Constitution which guaranteed specific personal freedoms, which were ratified in 1791.
The very first of these amendments reads in its entirety:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Freedom of speech, or freedom of expression more broadly, is, then, a cornerstone of the American Experiment.
My boss, John Hinderaker, appeared on MPR News last week to discuss the murder of Charlie Kirk. During the discussion, one of the other guests said that the First Amendment can be “frustrating” at times. Indeed, it is frustrating to see obvious falsehoods being peddled, for example. It is frustrating to see political views you find noxious being promoted, but the American way is to defeat them through debate: What is the alternative? We saw it last week.
Whatever frustrations flow from having a First Amendment pale in comparison to those that flow from not having it. In Britain, for example, 30 people are being arrested for “speech crimes” each day, about 12,000 annually, equivalent to 60,000 Americans.
As an organization dedicated to nurturing and advancing the American Experiment, we are committed to defend the right to free speech enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.