Values of Free Expression
By: Ava Daniels
The eight values of freedom include the following; marketplace of ideas, participation of self-government, stable change, individual self-fulfillment, check on governmental power, promote tolerance, promote innovation, and protect dissent. In my opinion, each of these values have good meaning to them, however, some are more important than others.
This value is not only about opinion but the right to action and that, in my opinion, is a key part to this value and makes it that much more important. It states that freedom of press results in knowledge of abused powers. The restraint of abused power by governments has a right to be called out and changed by U.S citizens when it comes time to vote in different elections. This value is important because it gives people the right to some authority over speaking out about misused power. Along with speaking and voicing opinions, action can also be taken.
This value of freedom is very important in my opinion. It states that in order to vote the right way, if you will, a citizen has to be educated and know what, as well as who, they are voting on and for. Being involved and participating in self-government ultimately means having access to candidates' opinions, what they stand for, and what their position values. Being denied this information or this information being policed can result in citizens making choices that are not very wise when voting for candidates.
Although there are values that I agree with, there are also some values that I do not. In other words, there are some parts of some of the eight values that either are not all inclusive, have some parts that are not true, or I just think are not held at the same importance as others.
Suggested by John Milton first, this value of free expression suggests that when a truth and ideas go up against each other, it will be clear which statement is the lie and the truth will eventually come out. This idea was derived from Milton's ultimate argument against requiring a license to print or publish writing to the public. Although in theory this would be seen as a benefit to most, it is not always the case; in multiple ways. On one hand, the statement “truth will win out” is sometimes false. When people of a higher power are put against others, we can sometimes tend to see a pattern of regardless of who is in the right or wrong, the higher power always will end up on top. I don’t believe in silencing people considering the first amendment right given to all citizens of the United States, however, there are many loopholes that make this possible. A lot of the time, the truth will not be made clear to the public because of this and that is why the marketplace of ideas, in my opinion, is not one of the most important values of freedom.
This value states that when it comes to freedom of speech, citizens are practically allowed to say anything, even if it is extremely offensive. The main idea that comes from this, that some might categorize as good, is that it helps people build tolerance towards speech. Even though this value's overall statement might be true, for some, it is not and that is why it should not be held at the same importance as other values. For example, some people will never build a tolerance for specific things that are said to them. Everyone feels differently about certain topics and things, and because of this, not everyone is going to eventually build tolerance. I also think that some groups of people, mainly minorities, are more likely to encounter a lot more tolerance-building than others in this country.
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