Eight Values of Free Expression

 We hear the phrase “free speech” all the time, but I think it becomes a lot more interesting when someone uses that freedom to say something we completely disagree with. It is easy to support free speech when we like what someone is saying. The harder part is accepting that people also have the right to say things that we find offensive, annoying, or even hateful. This is what made Promote Tolerance one of the Eight Values of Free Expression that stood out to me. 

The idea behind Promote Tolerance is that protecting speech we disagree with can actually help society become more tolerant. At first, this idea seems a little backwards. Why would protecting hateful or offensive speech make us more tolerant? Lee Bollinger discusses this idea in The Tolerant Society: Freedom of Speech and Extremist Speech. He argues that allowing people to express even extreme ideas can teach us how to deal with opinions that we strongly disagree with. Instead of immediately trying to silence those ideas, we can respond to them, challenge them, and understand why we disagree.
    

I think social media is one of the best examples of this. As a college student, I am constantly on TikTok Instagram, and X. I see people sharing their opinions about politics, religion, social issues, and sports. A lot of the time, my algorithm shows me things I already agree with. Then I will come across a video or post with an opinion that I completely disagree with. Sometimes I honestly cannot understand how someone could think that way, in a difference of the way I think.

  

Our first reaction can be to argue in the comments, block the person, report the post, or just keep scrolling. We all have the ability to respond in different ways. However, seeing something we do not like does not automatically mean the government should step in and remove it. The First Amendment protects people's ability to express their opinions, even when those opinions make other people uncomfortable. If I see someone disagree with my sports team, that does not mean it should be removed. If I see someone disagree with my political beliefs, it should not be removed.

This does not mean that being tolerant means agreeing with everything someone says. There is a big difference between allowing someone to have an opinion and supporting that opinion. We can think someone's beliefs are completely wrong while still recognizing their right to express them. We can also criticize those beliefs and explain why we think they are harmful. That is part of having an open conversation and allowing society to decide what it considers acceptable.

If we only hear opinions that we agree with, we never really have to practice dealing with disagreement. Being exposed to different ideas can teach us how to respond without immediately trying to shut someone down. Over time, these conversations can also help create social norms about what people consider acceptable, offensive, or harmful.

Social media makes this process happen almost instantly. Someone can post an opinion, and within minutes hundreds or even thousands of people can respond to it. Some people may agree, while others may criticize the person or explain why they think the opinion is wrong. The public has a role in deciding how ideas are received and what kind of behavior society is willing to accept.

At the same time, promoting tolerance does not mean there are no limits to free speech. Some types of speech are not protected by the First Amendment, and social media platforms also have their own rules about what can be posted. The important point is that simply disagreeing with someone is not automatically a reason to take away their ability to speak.

Promote Tolerance is about learning how to live with people who think differently from us. We are never going to agree with everyone as we all think for ourselves. The First Amendment protects the exchange of ideas that we may strongly disagree with. Being tolerant does not mean accepting every opinion or pretending that hateful ideas are okay. It means understanding the disagreement is part of living in a free society and learning how we can all respond rather than trying to silence them.