quotes about Freedom Of Speech
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Without freedom of speech, there is no modern world, just a barbaric one.
-- Ai WeiweiSource : "Ai Weiwei, Nursing Head Wound, Sharpens Criticism: Review" by Catherine Hickley, Bloomberg.com, October 14, 2009.
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Freedom of speech implies the world isn’t defined. It is meaningful when people are allowed to see the world their way.
-- Ai Weiwei -
I'm for the freedom of expression, given that it will be under strict control.
-- Alan Bennett -
The threat or fear of violence should not become an excuse or justification for restricting freedom of speech.
-- Alan DershowitzSource : "Are Radical Imams Going to Redefine Freedom of Speech?" by Alan Dershowitz, www.huffingtonpost.com. September 20, 2012.
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The law is agnostic about truth. It's very skeptical of ultimate truth. That's why freedom of speech permits lies to be told.
-- Alan Dershowitz -
The dimension of cultural equity needs to be added to the humane continuum of liberty, freedom of speech and religion, and social justice.
-- Alan Lomax -
Freedom of speech is a fundamental human right.
-- Anthony Horowitz -
A law imposing criminal penalties on protected speech is a stark example of speech suppression.
-- Anthony Kennedy -
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The Government may not suppress lawful speech as the means to suppress unlawful speech.
-- Anthony Kennedy -
The basis of democratic freedom is freedom of speech.
-- Aung San Suu Kyi -
Where there is no freedom of speech, there is no conscience.
-- Ayaan Hirsi AliSource : Speech on Freedom of Expression at the European Parliament, February 14, 2008.
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The freedom of speech of private individuals includes the right to not agree, not to listen, and not to finance one's own antagonists.
-- Ayn Rand -
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If you have freedom of speech, you have freedom of speech,
-- Barney RossetSource : "For Publisher Barney Rosset, Risk Has Its Rewards". Interview with Terry Gross, www.npr.org. November 21, 2008.
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America's greatest contribution to the world is its concept of democracy, its concept of freedom, freedom of action, freedom of speech, and freedom of thought.
-- Benazir Bhutto -
Freedom of speech and freedom of action are meaningless without freedom to think. And there is no freedom of thought without doubt.
-- Bergen Evans -
I am aware that America is and must always be a land of freedom including freedom of speech. But there is a right time and place for everything
-- Beverly LaHaye -
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While I've found many of the religious shows I've viewed over the years not to be to my liking, or in line with my own beliefs, I've never considered it my place to exert any greater type of censorship than changing the channel, or better yet - turning off the TV completely.
-- Bill Hicks -
Gorbachev gave us freedom of worship and freedom of speech and freedom to see what was going on and freedom to vote, but that freedom won't last unless it is underpinned by economic freedom.
-- Boris Yeltsin -
We should silence anyone who opposes the right to freedom of speech.
-- Boyle Roche -
Freedom of speech includes the freedom to offend people.
-- Brad Thor -
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I think freedom of speech is important, but coupled with responsibility.
-- Brandon Boyd -
In fact, it's the greatest threat to liberty of all kinds, whether it is freedom of religion, whether it is freedom of speech, whether it is freedom of the press, whether it is freedom of association, all of the rights that are enshrined in the First Amendment are threatened by the active, aggressive homosexual lobby and the homosexual agenda.
-- Bryan Fischer -
Wherever despotism abounds, the sources of public information are the first to be brought under its control. Where ever the cause of liberty is making its way, one of its highest accomplishments is the guarantee of the freedom of the press.
-- Calvin Coolidge -
Our job isn't to defend freedom of speech, but without freedom of speech we are dead. We can't live in a country without freedom of speech. I prefer to die than live like a rat.
-- Charb -
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Without free speech no search for truth is possible... no discovery of truth is useful.
-- Charles Bradlaugh -
It is not so much freedom of speech but the right to truth that great men protect.
-- Criss Jami -
There will be no more protest. No more dissension. No more violence. There will be only one voice. The voice of Ravinia. The voice of Halla. Your voice." "There goes freedom of speech." I said Alexnder Naymeer and Bobby Pendragon, Raven Rise, Page 458
-- D. J. MacHale -
And why do we, who say we oppose tyranny and demand freedom of speech, allow people to go to prison and be vilified, and magazines to be closed down on the spot, for suggesting another version of history.
-- David Icke -
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What we have is two important values in conflict: freedom of speech and our desire for healthy campaigns in a healthy democracy. You can't have both.
-- Dick GephardtSource : FaceBook post by Dick Gephardt from Oct 12, 2016
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In Iran, there is no freedom of the press, no freedom of speech, no independent judiciary, no free elections. There is no freedom of religion - not even for Shiites, who are forced by Irans theocracy to adhere to one narrow set of official rules.
-- Elliott Abrams -
At least in America, you have freedom of speech, which is a good thing. It's just a question of whether you're allowed to use it on 'Fox News'.
-- Eric IdleSource : Interview with TashaR, www.avclub.com. March 19, 2003.
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Freedom of speech trumps political correctness. I would say our magazine would publish an anti-Semitic or Holocaust denying cartoon if it meant Jews around the world were rioting because of it and burning embassies because of a cartoon. We would want to show our readers what all the fuss was about.
-- Ezra Levant -
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So sometimes the facts are good and sometimes the facts are bad, the important thing from the point of view of a principle as broad and important as freedom of speech is that the courts articulate and set forth in a very protective way what those principles are.
-- Floyd AbramsSource : "First Amendment Attorney Floyd Abrams Talks with CFIF’s Corporate Counsel About Three Decades of Free Speech". "Your Turn - Meeting Nonsense with Common Sense" with Renee Giachino, www.cfif.org. June 15, 2005.
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My desire to curtail undue freedom of speech extends only to such public areas as restaurants, airports, streets, hotel lobbies, parks, and department stores. Verbal exchanges between consenting adults in private are as of little interest to me as they probably are to them.
-- Fran Lebowitz -
Freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and freedom of religion all have a double aspect - freedom of thought and freedom of action.
-- Frank Murphy -
We have our difficulties, true; but we are a wiser and a tougher nation than we were in 1932. Never have there been six years of such far flung internal preparedness in all of history. And this has been done without any dictator's power to command, without conscription of labor or confiscation of capital, without concentration camps and without a scratch on freedom of speech, freedom of the press or the rest of the Bill of Rights.
-- Franklin D. Roosevelt -
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Freedom of speech is a great thing and we have said nothing that is not allowed.
-- Geert Wilders -
One cannot have a trade union or a democratic election without freedom of speech, freedom of association and assembly. Without a democratic election, whereby people choose and remove their rulers, there is no method of securing human rights against the state. No democracy without human rights, no human rights without democracy, and no trade union rights without either. That is our belief; that is our creed.
-- George Meany -
Take away freedom of speech, and the creative faculties dry up.
-- George Orwell -
In so far as it takes effect at all, pacifist propaganda can only be effective against those countries where a certain amount of freedom of speech is still permitted; in other words it is helpful to totalitarianism.
-- George Orwell -
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Israel is a country that respects freedom - freedom of assembly, freedom of speech and freedom of worship.
-- George Pataki -
Freedom of speech is one of the greatest American liberties, and I hope this pardon serves as a reminder of the precious freedoms we are fighting to preserve as we continue to wage the war on terror.
-- George Pataki -
The greatest fears that governments have are freedom of speech and exposing the corruptness, the ineptitude, and the double dealing going on that they don’t want the public knowing about.
-- Gerald Celente -
New York Times v. Sullivan was about the suppression of speech in the South [during the 1960s]. Today's version of suppression is just another verse of the same song.
-- Gilbert S. Merritt, Jr.Source : Speech at the University of Oregon, Nashville, 2004.
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I am sure that as soon as speech was invented, efforts to suppress and control it began, and that process of suppression continues unabated.
-- Gilbert S. Merritt, Jr.Source : Speech at the University of Oregon, 2004.
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You cannot take away freedom to protect it, you cannot destroy the free market to save it, and you cannot uphold freedom of speech by silencing those with whom you disagree. To take rights away to defend them or to spend your way out of debt defies common sense.
-- Glenn BeckSource : Glenn Beck (2009). “Glenn Beck's Common Sense: The Case Against an Ouf-of-Control Government, Inspired by Thomas Paine”, p.17, Simon and Schuster
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If we were going to address what involves the biggest number of women, reproductive freedom is a fundamental human right - like freedom of speech, the most basic right. Freedom from violence, since women worldwide are still like 70% at least of all victims of violence. Equality in the family, democracy in the family, since the family is the microcosm of everything else, so if you have inequality and violence in the family, it normalizes it in the street, for foreign policy, for every place else.
-- Gloria Steinem -
For the average American, freedom of speech is simply the freedom to repeat what everyone else is saying and no more.
-- Gore VidalSource : Gore Vidal (2011). “Burr: A Novel”, p.598, Vintage
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The justification and the purpose of freedom of speech is not to indulge those who want to speak their minds. It is to prevent error and discover truth. There may be other ways of detecting error and discovering truth than that of free discussion, but so far we have not found them.
-- Henry Steele Commager -
how can a democratic discourse exist in a corporate owned informational system? Who, for example, possesses freedom of speech in such a society?
-- Herbert SchillerSource : "Living In The Number One Country". Book by Herbert Schiller, 2000.
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Slavery tolerates no freedom of the press, no freedom of speech, no freedom of opinion.
-- Hinton Rowan HelperSource : Hinton Rowan Helper (1860). “The impending crisis of the South: how to meet it”, p.436
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There is freedom of speech, but I cannot guarantee freedom after speech
-- Idi Amin -
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There is nothing more wonderful than freedom of speech.
-- Ilya Ehrenburg -
Freedom of speech doesn't mean freedom from judgement.
-- Jackson Pearce -
With typical arrogance, the Anglos claimed to cherish freedom of speech but failed to recognize this right for anyone but themselves. Where did the Constitution say anything about English?
-- James CrawfordSource : James Crawford (1992). “Hold Your Tongue: Bilingualism and the Politics of English Only”, Addison Wesley Publishing Company
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Journalists justify their treachery in various ways according to their temperaments. The more pompous talk about freedom of speech and ‘the public’s right to know’; the least talented talk about Art; the seemliest murmur about earning a living.
-- Janet MalcolmSource : Janet Malcolm (2011). “The Journalist And The Murderer”, p.14, Granta Books
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Tabloids invoke freedom of speech, but they're not interested in that, they're just interested in who's shagging whom, who's got drunk. And if you take that pretend, faux moral standpoint, you end up with people in public life being completely boring. Like they've had their genitals removed.
-- Jarvis Cocker -
Hundreds of political prisoners still suffer in Tibetan prisons. Freedom of speech is not allowed in any sense. It is illegal to possess a photo of the Dalai Lama.
-- Joanna LumleySource : "Biography/ Personal Quotes". www.imdb.com.
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Freedom of speech is, to all Americans, as oxygen is to the human condition. It is a right that has been irreversibly programmed into our hard drive. We are free to speak our minds. An artist's right to express him or herself as best suits their art, is the artist's prerogative and it is guaranteed.
-- John C. McGinley -
You believe in freedom of speech for communists because what they say is true. You do not believe in freedom of speech for fascists because what they say is a lie.
-- John Howard Lawson -
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The dissemination of the individual's opinions on matters of public interest is for us, in the historic words of the Declaration of Independence, an 'unalienable right' that 'governments are instituted among men to secure.' History shows us that the Founders were not always convinced that unlimited discussion of public issues would be 'for the benefit of all of us' but that they firmly adhered to the proposition that the 'true liberty of the press' permitted 'every man to publish his opinion'.
-- John Marshall Harlan IISource : Curtis Publishing Co. v. Butts, 1967.
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The freedom to make a fortune on the stock exchange has been made to sound more alluring than freedom of speech.
-- John Mortimer -
Freedom of thought and freedom of speech in our great institutions are absolutely necessary for the preservation of our country. The moment either is restricted, liberty begins to wither and die...
-- John Peter Altgeld -
I keep telling myself to calm down, to take less of an interest in things and not to get so excited, but I still care a lot about liberty, freedom of speech and expression, and fairness in journalism.
-- Kate Adie -
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A state that suppresses all freedom of speech, and which by imposing the most terrible punishments, treats each and every attempt at criticism, however morally justified, and every suggestion for improvement as plotting to high treason, is a state that breaks an unwritten law.
-- Kurt Huber -
Laws protecting the United States flag do not cut away at the freedom of speech guaranteed in the First Amendment... Congress made this position clear upon passage of the Flag Protection Act of 1989, which prohibited desecration of the flag.
-- Larry Craig -
Freedom of speech doesn't protect speech you like; it protects speech you don't like.
-- Larry Flynt -
Privacy is not explicitly spelled out in the Constitution as freedom of speech is in the First Amendment.
-- Larry Flynt -
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Freedom of speech is always under attack by Fascist mentality, which exists in all parts of the world, unfortunately.
-- Lawrence Ferlinghetti -
It is the function of speech to free men from the bondage of irrational fears.
-- Louis D. Brandeis -
Freedom of expression is actually a way for people to know themselves better, and to understand themselves better. Because without it, you become a stranger to yourself.
-- Lucien Bourjeily -
The great thing about improvisation is that it allows us to establish an uncensored form of theater. Freedom of speech is absolutely inherent to artistic expression.
-- Lucien BourjeilySource : FaceBook post by Lucien Bourjeily from Oct 20, 2009
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In the years since then, those four freedoms - freedom of speech, freedom of worship, freedom from want, and freedom from fear - have stood as a summary of our aspirations for the American Republic and for the world.
-- Lyndon B. Johnson -
Does freedom of speech give the right to offend?
-- Maajid Nawaz -
I believe in freedom of speech. And I believe that spending on political campaigns is a form of political speech that is protected under the constitution.
-- Marco Rubio -
If one more 'journalist' makes a cavalier statement about me and my band, I will personally or with my fans' help, greet them at their home and discover just how much they believe in their freedom of speech.
-- Marilyn Manson -
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Free speech is the cornerstone to every right we have.
-- Mark Thomas -
If you want to be free, or you want to preserve freedom for people, you both need to have laws that make it so people have freedom of speech and all the freedoms that they need. You also need to have an open governance system where people can vote and people have representation.
-- Mark Zuckerberg -
The fundamentals that founded our great nation included the freedom of speech and religion.
-- Markwayne MullinSource : "Rep. Markwayne Mullin defends "Duck Dynasty" star's speech rights" by Chris Casteel, newsok.com. December 19, 2013.
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More and more Chinese intend to embrace freedom of speech and human rights as their birthright, not some imported American privilege.
-- Michael Anti -
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In short, individual freedom of speech leads to a stronger society. But knowing that principle is not enough. You have to know how to put it to use on the Net.
-- Mike GodwinSource : Mike Godwin (1998). “Cyber Rights: Defending Free Speech in the Digital Age”, Crown Business
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Exploring and understanding the Net is an ongoing process. Cyberspace never sits still; it evolves as fast as society itself. Only if we fight to preserve our freedom of speech on the Net will we ensure our ability to keep up with both the Net and society.
-- Mike Godwin -
Does a person have a right to change his or her own religion? This is a fundamental human right, just like a right to freedom of speech.
-- Miroslav Volf -
Free speech is meaningless if the commercial cacophony has risen to the point where no one can hear you.
-- Naomi KleinSource : Naomi Klein (2000). “No Logo: Taking Aim at the Brand Bullies”, Vintage Canada
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Free speech is meant to protect unpopular speech. Popular speech, by definition, needs no protection.
-- Neal BoortzSource : Neal Boortz (1998). “The Terrible Truth About Liberals”, p.49, Taylor Trade Publishing
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The current total of countries in the world with First Amendments is one. You have guaranteed freedom of speech. Other countries don't have that.
-- Neil Gaiman -
I am a passionate believer in freedom of speech. I would not support anything which would impinge on aggressive robust freedom of the British press, but when things go wrong and there has been outright illegality, there should be proper accountability.
-- Nick Clegg -
Freedom of thought, freedom of speech, freedom of identity. This is my Holy Trinity, each one an intrinsic aspect of my god: Freedom, the Holiest of Holies. Yes it bloody well is. It is absolutely sacred and inviolable, beyond any negotiation or compromise, now and forever. Amen.
-- Pat CondellSource : YouTube Channel "Pat Condell"/"Free Speech Is Sacred", www.youtube.com. March 17, 2009.
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We don't need to 'control' free speech, we need to control ourselves.
-- Peggy Noonan -
Town after town has but one newspaper or one radio station. It is often owned by Murdoch. Yes, we don't have as much freedom of the press as we think we have - although the traditional freedom of speech is strongly rooted in American culture.
-- Pete Seeger -
I grew up under Communism so we could only learn Russian, and then when Communism fell in 1989 we could learn a few more things and have the freedom to travel and the freedom of speech - and the freedom of dreaming, really.
-- Petra NemcovaSource : "How supermodel Petra Nemcova's tragedy changed children's lives" by Hermione Hoby, www.theguardian.com. March 12, 2011.
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A man is entitled to say whatever he wants to say. It's America, freedom of speech.
-- Reggie Evans -
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The exploitation of women, mass hunger, disregard for freedom of conscience and for freedom of speech, widespread and racial discrimination all these evils are far too prevalent to be overlooked.
-- Rene Cassin -
I say let's go back to a truer use of the word 'freedom.' Let's start with President Franklin Roosevelt's Four Freedoms: freedom of speech and expression, freedom of worship, freedom from want and freedom from fear. I would add the freedom to bargain collectively. Those freedoms are under attack today.
-- Richard TrumkaSource : "Freedom Isn’t Free" by Richard Trumka, www.huffingtonpost.com. July 3, 2012.
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It's not about contraception. It's about economic liberty, it's about freedom of speech, it's about freedom of religion, it's about government control of your lives and it's got to stop!
-- Rick Santorum -
I no longer believe in freedom of speech.
-- Rob DelaneySource : Twitter post from Oct 8, 2011
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The first amendment protects free speech, but if you don't have freedom of thought, do you really have freedom of speech?
-- Rob Kampia -
Any government which fears freedom of speech and expression, should fear the internet more.
-- Robert Black -
I am a believer in liberty . That is my religion to give to every other human being every right that I claim for myself, and I grant to every other human being, not the right because it is his right but instead of granting I declare that it is his right, to attack every doctrine that I maintain, to answer every argument that I may urge in other words, he must have absolute freedom of speech.
-- Robert Green Ingersoll -
Dissents speak to a future age. It's not simply to say, 'My colleagues are wrong and I would do it this way.' But the greatest dissents do become court opinions and gradually over time their views become the dominant view. So that's the dissenter's hope: that they are writing not for today but for tomorrow.
-- Ruth Bader GinsburgSource : Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Wendy W. Williams (2016). “My Own Words”, p.349, Simon and Schuster
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