Free speech not at expense of others

Free speech not at expense of others

The majority of the news you hear about blacks is negative; high crime rate, drug use being up, high birth rate out of wedlock. Even if you are someone like me, who believes that the vast majority of the statistics about African-Americans are nothing but a bunch of empty propaganda, it can get really depressing hearing nothing but negative news for 300+ days of the year. February is basically the only month in which people everywhere celebrate and dwell on the positive aspects of the African-American society. My question to Antoine Perkins: Why did you choose this particular month, Black History Month, to portray your negative views on the status of the African-American people when you have the rest of the year to do so?Like most people, I too am a firm believer in the right of free speech. I also am a believer of perhaps one of the greatest truths ever stated: ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’ (The Declaration of Independence). I also am a firm believer of the little known Ninth Amendment of the original bill of rights: ‘The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.’ In a nutshell, this amendment is saying that one right cannot be used to trample over another right. Racism in any form is a threat to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Hiding behind the freedom of speech clause of the First Amendment to promote racist views is in direct violation of these unalienable rights, therefore making it unconstitutional to allow bigotry to exist in any shape or form in America.

Raymond McFarlandJournalismSophomore