by Chris Basten

  One of the barometers I use for free speech is the level of offense that is taken by a group or groups of people in reaction to it. If a country truly allows free speech to reign, people should be offended all of the time. In trying to find an unseen benefit within the scores of media rants and raves, I see a lot of offended people in this country. People are apparently saying things they shouldn't be (quite often, in fact), which signals to me that we can generally say or express ourselves as we see fit. I fear that freedom of speech and expression is in trouble, however.

How are our First Amendment rights doing? They've taken a beating in the past few years. Unfortunately, a lot of the hub-bub has to do with religious expression. 2003 saw gritty battles over having or not having "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance and whether or not the Ten Commandments can be displayed on public property. More recently, Muslim head scarves worn in school and anti-homosexual views have been the topic of discussion.

In Muskogee, OK, Nashala Hearn was allowed to wear her head scarf to school after officials initially told her she couldn't. They later backed down and promised that they would revisit their policy banning all head coverings without a religious exemption. How wearing a head scarf for religious reasons is offensive is beyond me but the fact that the school district felt threatened by a piece of fabric that harmed no one else or their property is even more peculiar.

An Ann Arbor, MI student recently filed a suit when her Catholic views were disallowed from a panel discussion about homosexuality and religion. The student, Elizabeth Hansen, had a court rule in her favor when it determined that her right to free speech had been violated. Apparently, school officials also went against an establishment clause by having a panel that presented only one religious viewpoint on homosexuality.

Librarians in Meriden, CT had to go to the library board to allow barred Jesus images to be displayed again. Apparently, all other portraits were allowed except for those that showed Jesus. Mary Morely, who wanted to share her religious art, received a favorable vote from the board and is now allowed to present images of Jesus to the public after initially being shunned for fear of offending others.

Any consumer of current events knows that there are many more daily fights that go on for the right to freedom of speech and expression. The fact that federal courts and local boards are inconsistent in their rulings for First Amendment rights is definitely concerning. A big handful of Americans erroneously assume that free speech should be allowed unless it offends them personally. This, however, is the opposite of free speech. The First Amendment was especially designed for those who are easily offended and for those who easily offend others. Freedom of speech mandates that we do not waver based upon emotions. The freedom to speak and express ourselves will always bring offense to someone somewhere. Because of this realization, the Founding Fathers included an amendment that says the freedom to be one's self cannot be eliminated just because someone does not approve of it. Freedom demands that this principle be upheld.

Personally, I don't offend easily unless an argument for or against something is so agenda-based that it infringes upon the rights of others. For instance, opening sessions in Congress with prayer is not the issue. Anyone should be allowed to pray wherever and whenever they feel they must. The problem with these sessions is that they open with Christian prayer and exclude other faiths, thereby infringing upon their individual rights to pray as they see fit. Congress would be applying First Amendment rights if they opened with a moment of silence instead of forcing a Christian prayer on others whether they like it or not. It works very well at sporting events when we honor those who have passed away or when a major disaster has occurred.

With my rather unpopular agnostic atheist leanings, I greatly fear for freedom of religion in America. When people are not free to worship or not worship as they please, they are a disgruntled, angry, and potentially violent bunch of folks. Witness this anywhere else in the world and tell me otherwise. One of America's founding principles was the freedom of religion. This is why freedom of speech is so valuable. Without those who have strong religious views to share, America would not have the rich dialogue that it has when it comes to ethics and individual rights. Favoring one group at the expense of all others is a socialist idea and is dangerous at best. All opinions, no matter how radical and offensive, must be accepted for consideration. It doesn't mean that we have to agree with or like these opinions but they should at least be allowed in a country that prides itself on freedom of speech.

Cautious optimism is warranted with future First Amendment cases in court or those presented to community boards. Usually enough cases balance each other out where we can still get along despite the glaring contradictions. But if the current trend of conflicting laws and regulations ensues, we could be in for a rough ride. Liberty is not just for those who believe in it; it is also for those who want to push their narrow agenda on others. It is totally fine if flaming atheists want to remove all vestiges of Christianity from public property. It is also fine if Fundamentalists want to Christianize America. Freedom of speech demands that their views be secured. Nevertheless, it is not fine and dandy to allow the use of government force to favor one side over the other.

Government is meant to defend and protect all individuals, not extol one group while outlawing others who can't afford to lobby and support reelection campaigns. If groups with certain agendas, no matter how narrow they may be, want to change things in America, they must learn the fragile art of persuasion instead of running to a "Daddy Big Bucks" government to bail out their particular cause with force. The freedom to choose is the most precious right that each individual possesses. If one can be persuaded, instead of forced to comply against their will, their freedom of choice has been honored. Unfortunately, the bigger Government gets, the more we run to it like toddlers in tears because we want everyone else to live or believe as we do. America needs to relearn the art of persuasion and allow our audiences to choose based upon how persuasive they think certain viewpoints are. Being offended once in awhile won't hurt us in the least. Even if we are offended, we can still respect the perspective of others without having to adopt it. If we continue down the current path of dependence on Government coercion, however, the only viewpoint left will be that of the barrel of a gun staring at us.