The Eight Values

 Under the First Amendment of our Constitution, protection is a guarantee for The Eight Values of Free Expression, yet like no other time before, these values face constant challenge and brutal assault by those who neglect to be tolerant of differing or opposing thoughts and beliefs.

1. Marketplace of Ideas 

2. Participation in Self-Government

3. Stable Change 

4. Individual Self-Fulfillment 

5. Check on Governmental Power 

6. Promote Tolerance

7. Promote Innovation

8. Protect Dissent

Of the Eight Values of Free Expression, it is vital that we relentlessly protect Promote Tolerance. Tolerance is what drove the Colonists out of England and became the bedrock of our Constitution. The concept of tolerance is easily understood - to respect that which is different and that which we may not agree. As toddlers, we learn tolerance when learning to play with others. As children, we are taught to be tolerant of those who look or sound different. As young adults, we are taught to tolerate and respect different opinions, religions, and beliefs. Yet, as adults living and working in a complex and chaotic world, tolerance is, at times, quickly abandoned to fear when our political views, personal opinions, or beliefs of racial equality are attacked and at risk of alteration due to the beliefs of another. Social media may be the single most egregious media source that allows for the corruption of tolerance and the perversion of freedom of speech simply because of how quickly and far-reaching words can spread through the many forms of social media. With that said, there is much to be learned from social media exploits, such as the fine art of deciphering between truths and nontruths. Propaganda and the manipulation of the truth are rampant throughout social media, raising tensions in more ardent defense of free speech. Whether of high moral ground or rooted in hate, we seek truth and what is just on principle. The question then becomes how do we comprehend what is moral, truthful, just and weed out evil disinformation and lies? In The Tolerant Society: Freedom of Speech and Extremist Speech, Bollinger theorizes a more psychological way to differentiate between moral truth and evil lies, "if one looks not at the speech but at the motivation behind the restrictions, one may properly conclude that the restrictions were imposed for bad reasons."

Optimistically, Stable Change is the Value of Free Expression most personal to me. There is nothing more crucial in the political arena than allowing candidates to speak unfettered to their constituents. It is equally vital for the people to speak freely to their respective candidate. In Tractatus-Theologico Politicus, Benedict Spinoza believes that citizens will grow more restless under a dictatorial rule stating, "so constituted that there is nothing they would more reluctantly put up with than that the opinions they belief to be true should be outlawed." Look no further than to the west coast state of California to see this playing out today concerning the unconstitutional ban on the people's freedom to religious worship during the Covid-19 epidemic. The religious citizens of California stood up, spoke out, and took their case to the Supreme Court to victory.