Freedom of Speech

The First Amendment of the United States Constitution grants citizens, and non-citizens, of the United States the freedom of religion, freedom of the media, freedom of assembly or petition, and freedom of speech (Constitution). While all of these freedoms are great, is there a need to place limitations upon them? Is censorship needed to ensure that Americans live in a slander and libel free society? Placing limitations on, or censoring, free speech is unethical towards Americans.
Censoring speech is not a good thing. If speech is censored, the government takes more control of our lives. If Americans are unable to say certain things then the government controls the country outright. The government of the United States of America allows Americans the freedom of speech, for them to take it away would be irreverent. To begin with, it is not for the government to decide to give citizens freedom of speech because it is a basic human right. Everyone was born with vocal chords and mouths to speak through, it is not for the government to decide what people can and cannot say. To silence a person for their beliefs is just downright wrong. If they truly believe in something they should be granted freedom to speak their mind. The key word is truly.
Slander and libel are in ways the demonstration of free speech but also the enemies of free speech in America. Slander is the defamation of a person’s reputation through spoken word while libel is through published works. Defaming someone is considered slander or libel only if the person making the statement knows what they are saying is not completely true. As I mentioned before, if the person truly believes in something then they should be able to speak freely. Slander and libel do not fall under this qualification. An example of slander would be to call someone gay even if you know for a fact that they have a girlfriend and are heterosexual. You know that this person is completely heterosexual yet you classify them as a homosexual. If you do not know that this person is heterosexual and call a person gay then it is not considered slander because you did not know better. It is slander because it is defaming someone for something that is not true. What the Constitution grants Americans is freedom of speech. It does not grant Americans the freedom from insult. Americans cannot depend on the government to fight their everyday battles. If someone makes fun of another person then it is their situation to deal with. The government is not in place to fight everyday battles for its citizens. Americans are able to say whatever they like and the government is unable to act on them. While the government cannot step in, a place of employment can punish based on their own ideals.
Besides slander and libel, it is not okay to yell “Fire” in a crowded theater. The reasoning behind it being wrong is that it causes a widespread panic. If you are in a theater with only a few people and yell “fire” then it is not a big deal. The few people in there may leave but there will not be a large struggle. Yelling it in a theater is very different. A situation in 1913 proves this. The Italian Hall in Michigan was holding a Christmas party on Christmas Eve. During this party someone yelled, “Fire.” Mass panic ensued and it led to the deaths of 73 party goers (The Italian Hall Story). The person who yelled “fire” is unknown but they were out of line with the First Amendment. They caused a panic which killed 73 people and that is not what freedom of speech is intended for. The intent of this right is for people to be able to speak their mind and not to cause panic. Situations like this can be avoided if Americans would use a little common sense and not be idiots.
Although there are instances like this the positives of free speech outweigh the negatives. Free speech allows us to call out wrongdoings within the government. This keeps politicians in check. If we were all just followers of political figures then they could get away with anything. Freedom of speech allows us to doubt. One of the best examples of freedom of speech right now is what is said on The Glenn Beck Program. He is one of the biggest doubters of the Obama Administration. A majority of news networks are controlled by liberals with Fox News being the only major network focused on conservative ideals. Without Fox News and Glenn Beck the entire United States would be getting news that favors liberals and looks down on conservatives. This freedom of the media is especially important. With liberals currently in office, they would control all of the news sources without Fox News. Because of the First Amendment, Fox News can coexist with the other networks and provide a different news experience.
What it comes down to is free speech is necessary for the well being of not only America but mankind. Without allowing free speech, those in power could do whatever they please. There are the setbacks that are libel and slander but they come with the territory. The Constitution states that Americans have the freedom of speech so that is what Americans get. It does not go into detail with what is not allowed it only states what is allowed. After all, what the Constitution says is supreme law in the United States. Americans who want to place restrictions on free speech need to realize that once something is censored then it becomes easier to censor even more things. Even if free speech has its flaws it is still a whole lot better than restricted speech.