Episode 196: Is There a Time and a Place for Free Speech?

The right of Americans to have free speech has been debated recently. Some have been arguing that this right is inviolate and has no boundaries. But even in places where it can be exercised, are there times and places and even methods of speech that are inappropriate? Can expressing yourself wind up being counter-productive to your reason for speaking?

Somehow, someway, I take on this subject by bringing up the Westboro Baptist Church, HGTV almost-hosts Jason and David Benham, Jack Phillips of Masterpiece Cakeshop, and football. Yes, they all have something in common; the First Amendment.

Mentioned links:

Westboro Baptist Church [Wikipedia]

Snyder v. Phelps [Wikipedia]

Episode 76: Brendan and the Benhams; The Intolerant “Tolerance Police” Claim Their Next Victim

2 Killed, 29 Wounded In Chicago Weekend Shootings

Oh, and I dare you to try not to stand for this:

Show transcript

Does the Westboro Baptist Church have First Amendment free speech rights? Of course they do. It doesn’t matter that you disagree with what they might have to say, they have the right to say it. Well, some people seem to think that so-called “hate speech” isn’t protected by the First Amendment, but 8 Supreme Court justices have said otherwise, ruling in favor of Fred Phelps and his church in 2011.

Westboro has exercised its rights in venues that many would consider inappropriate with their “God hates fags” signs. (Just a side note; he doesn’t, in the sense that he loves all of his creation.) They contend that things like 9/11, terrorism, and war deaths are due to God’s anger over homosexuality and same-sex marriage. Now, I will say that I believe, as Christianity has believed for a couple thousand years, that homosexual acts are a sin, and that same-sex “marriage” isn’t marriage as God intended (or at least shouldn’t have been imposed on the entire nation by the aforementioned Supreme Court). I think the Westboro crowd would agree with that, but the difference is that their methods of saying this, and the places in which they decide to say it, are changing few, if any, minds. There are better places, times, and methods to get their point across.

Also, your First Amendment right can get you in trouble, in spite of that freedom. If you say inappropriate things at work, for example, you can be fired. There have been examples where certain tweets on a company or organization’s Twitter account has gotten them fired. Your free speech rights can be restricted by your employer.

Just ask Jason and David Benham. I’ve talked about their situation before, back in May of 2014. They had a potential TV series lined up on the HGTV channel where they would fix up dilapidated homes for families in need. However, when David Benham dared to affirm the aforementioned idea that Christians have held for 2 millennia, HGTV cancelled the show before it started. Regardless of what you think of that, it was their right.

(Oh, and try exercising your Second Amendment right at many work places! But I digress.)

Keep that in mind. The free speech right that you and I have can be expressed in appropriate places, times, and via appropriate methods, or they can be inappropriate. Westboro is the poster child for inappropriateness, and the Benhams know what happens when your employer cans you for speech, even outside of the job.

So then, where am I going with this?

Last week, a bunch of guys knelt down in protest. No one – let me say that again – no one at all, who was part of the high profile reaction to this,