"Make Freedom of Speech Liberal Again"

[Anonymous]

Interesting interview of Nadine Strossen, former ACLU president, about how the left has co-opted "freedom of speech" and is using it to silence anyone they disagree with. Spot on and so relevant to many of the topics discussed on this very forum.
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“When people hear the term ‘hate speech,’ ” she says, “they usually envision the most heinous examples—a racial epithet; spitting in the face of Dr. Martin Luther King. But in fact, when you see what’s been attacked as so-called hate speech on campus, it’s opposing the idea of defund the police, opposing the idea of open borders.” Any questioning of transgender ideology or identity is cast as “denying the humanity of trans people, or transphobic.” Ms. Strossen hastens to add that “I completely support full and equal rights for trans people,” but she says critics are “raising concerns that I think deserve to be raised and deserve to be discussed.”

Ms. Strossen, herself a professor emerita at New York Law School, likens the situation on campuses to McCarthyism, “a climate of fear that leads to treating certain people with suspicion or, worse, ostracizing those people and those who try to defend them, and punishing them.”

They target not only so-called hate speech but so-called disinformation. “As I look at reports of what is treated as ‘disinformation’ about everything from the election to Covid, not surprisingly, it’s perspectives that are inconsistent with whoever is wielding power, whether it be the Democrats in Congress or in the White House.”

On campus, she admits that things are worse than they’ve been at least since the McCarthy era—but she still tries to look on the bright side. “I am absolutely convinced that a future generation is going to look back on this time and say this is another very bad time,” she says. “I’m very hopeful of that. I’m hoping it comes sooner rather than later.”

https://www.wsj.com/articles/make-free-speech-liberal-again-john-stuart-mill-aclu-nadine-strossen-classical-liberalism-universities-censorship-social-media-11659710472?mod=opinion_lead_pos5

[Anonymous]

Weird. I feel the right has co-opted freedom of speech as freedom to say whatever bigoted untruths they want with no consequences and entitlement to a platform for their lies.

[Anonymous]

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1074733.page

[Anonymous]

Yes, those middle age and older professors sure know what’s being talked about by the 18-22 year olds on campus. The only times I talked to my professors as a undergrads were during office hours and strictly about the class materials. They see the 5% that protest or are very opinionated and ascribe it to the campus environment and that it’s the reality. They have no idea, there have always been activists on campuses. Plenty of non woke things are done and talked about among the other 95%.