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Freedom of Speech Essay

The right to free speech is one of the most cherished rights of citizens of the United States.  So valued is this right, in fact, that it is codified in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution: “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.”  It is this basic right that is the focus of freedom of speech essays. In fact, an excellent way to introduce freedom of speech essays is by quoting the First Amendment.

In spite of the Constitution’s explicit guarantee to freedom of speech, this right does have its limitations.  For example, hate speech, libel, slander, obscenity, and incitement to riot or crime are not protected by the right to freedom of speech.  This should be explained in freedom of speech essays. Sometimes too, because of these limitations, the right to freedom of speech has come under attack.  Censorship and pornography are two issues related to the First Amendment right to free speech and the limitations it imposes.  This makes issues raised in essays on censorship and essays on the debate over pornography relevant to freedom of speech essays. Even essays on violence in the media deal with issues concerning the right to free speech and thus have concepts in common with freedom of speech essays. You will discover this as you research the topic of freedom of speech and read examples of essays on freedom of speech.

A comparison of the right to freedom of speech, as guaranteed by the US Constitution, to  how other countries treat the right, or lack of right, to freedom of speech can provide a very interesting perspective in a freedom of speech essay as well as interesting approach to writing it.  The right to freedom of speech is a basic tenant of democracy; without it democracy could not thrive.  However, it is a right that has to be safeguarded, which is also a very important point to be made in freedom of speech essays.

Most of us take advantage of the fact that we have the right to freedom of speech.  By writing freedom of speech essays you will discover how truly important this right is to democracy and liberty.