We are at a moment in our shared national history when the freedom of speech has become a subject of controversy. On the left, college students demand the rescission of invitations to speakers whose ideas they disfavour.1 On the right, President Trump has repeatedly threatened to censor the press for publishing journalism critical of his administration.2 The only thing that seems to unite the left and right in our polarized society appears to be their unanimous disdain for the freedom of speech.

This is a dangerous condition for a democratic government, which relies on the free exchange and debate of ideas to function properly. Even worse, many of those who hold strong views on the freedom of speech are alarmingly oblivious to current and historical legal and philosophical doctrines surrounding it, with increasing levels of moral sanctimony correlating positively with constitutional and philosophical illiteracy.

The purpose of these remarks is to supply the inquisitive reader with a basic primer on the political philosophy, intellectual history, and present legal status of freedom of speech in the United States; to articulate an argument in support of a robust right to free speech; and to acknowledge and respond to some contemporary objections to unfettered free speech.