Americans Prize Free Speech; They Must Use It or Lose It

A new Rasmussen poll found that 85 percent of Americans surveyed believe that “the right to free speech is ‘more important than making sure no one is offended by what others say.’” How heartening!

After all, this poll was conducted in the midst of the most sustained assault on freedom of speech in memory.  Radical leftists are using violence and the threat of it to silence others.  The Southern Poverty Law Center is encouraging such behavior by smearing political opponents as “haters” and “bigots.”  Muslim Brotherhood front groups are piling on, seeking to enforce Sharia blasphemy laws.  And the U.S. Senate recently, unanimously adopted a resolution that feeds into the narrative that suppressing speech is justified to counter “hate crimes.”

If Americans prize their freedom of speech, they must exercise it now to preserve the First Amendment – or risk losing it forever.