Conversation buzzes about the right to express one’s opinions when the Genocide Awareness Project comes to campus. Students who find the images disturbing and inappropriate may think this is something the university should prevent from coming to campus.
However, if Western begins to censor protests such as the GAP then it would infringe on the rights of other groups coming to campus and share their ideas.
The First Amendment, which contains our five freedoms, is the single most important statement in America.
We are lucky to live in a country where freedom of expression is so highly valued. We are lucky to be on a campus that so graciously allows diverse, and sometimes controversial, opinions to be presented on campus.
Some students may not know the First Amendment does more than support freedom of speech. The First Amendment also protects freedom of religion, the press, the right to peacefully assemble and the right to petition to redress grievances.
Though this may be common knowledge for most students on Western’s campus, an investigative report showed that more people can name the five family members of the Simpson’s than the five freedoms in the First Amendment, according to an article on MSNBC.com.
The article titled, “D’oh! More know Simpsons than Constitution,” says that only one in four people can name two or more of the freedoms included in the First Amendment.
The two freedoms in the First Amendment that relate to activities on campus are the freedom of speech and freedom to peacefully assemble.
Though students may not enjoy walking by disgusting images or listening to people preach about their religion, we must allow these activities in order to protect our own rights.
In 1993 an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas, named Anthony Griffin, was asked to defend Michael Lowe, the grand dragon of the Ku Klux Klan. Asking for membership records, the human rights commission had subpoenaed Lowe. Because this is an attack on Lowe’s right to peacefully assemble and his freedom of expression, he sought help from the ACLU.
What Lowe did not know was that his attorney would be an African American man. Griffin could have refused the case but instead decided to defend Lowe, and he won. Griffin received a lot of scrutiny for defending Lowe, but in a famous quote from the case he said, “If I don’t stand up and defend the Klan’s right to free speech, my right to free speech will be gone.”
This is a great example of the power of the First Amendment. Griffin recognized that the need to protect his freedom of speech was more important than the attacks he received from the community for his decision.
If we place censorship on one thing, it could cross over into other areas. Western, being a more liberal-minded school, may be sheltered from starkly opposite opinions of other people in our society who may come from a conservative background.
By bringing different ideas to Red Square, students can reaffirm their own ideas and learn about others’ opinions.
It may not be the ideal situation to have 10-foot tall pictures of upsetting images in Red Square, but those protesters have a right to be there, and students have the choice as to how to deal with that.
They can exercise their freedom of speech through pictures, and we can express our freedom by avoiding Red Square and ignoring the scene if need be.
Students may not always agree with the messages presented in the free speech zone in Red Square, but they should recognize this as an expression of First Amendment rights.
The editorial board is comprised of Editor in Chief Jeff Richards, Opinion Editor Lisa Hust, Arts Editor Kaleb Gubernick and News Editor Gabrielle Nomura.
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