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Thursday, January 27, 2011
News White supremacists in Charlotte?
Posted By Rhiannon Fionn-Bowman on Thu, Jan 27, 2011 at 11:57 AM
Should white supremacists be allowed to do their thing in Charlotte? You know, I haven't heard one person suggest their hosting a conference in the Q.C. is a good idea, and, personally, I find the idea pretty appalling ... but ...
Here's the thing about the First Amendment: We have to protect everyone's right to free speech. We have to give people the space to believe whatever the hell it is they think they should believe. Even if, and maybe especially if, we don't agree with anything they say or believe.
I know it's difficult. I know. But we can't go picking and choosing whose rights we'll protect and whose we won't.
As Noam Chomsky once said, "If you believe in freedom of speech, you believe in freedom of speech for views you don't like. Stalin and Hitler, for example, were dictators in favor of freedom of speech for views they liked only. If you're in favor of freedom of speech, that means you're in favor of freedom of speech precisely for views you despise."
Rhiannon "Rhi" Bowman is an independent journalist who contributes snarky commentary on Creative Loafing's CLog blog four days a week in addition to writing for several other local media organizations. To learn more, click the links or follow Rhi on Twitter.
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