by xe

Created on: February 06, 2009

Protesters Free Speech Is Protected By The US Constitution! "I may totally disagree with what you say, but I will defend to my death your right to say it". Frank J. Dusek, my Father and a decorated WWII Veteran explained what freedom of speech and democracy meant to him with those words. Why would we fear allowing fellow Americans to express their opinion? What part of the United States Constitution gives me the right to say who gets to state their views? Are we so insecure in our stewardship of Democracy that we must be afraid of those who feel differently than we do?

The Constitution and Bill of Rights apply to each and every US Citizen who follows our nation's laws and threatens no physical harm to their fellow citizens. As long as protests are law-abiding and do no harm, they represent the reason our nation is great. If we feel a law is unjust and choose to violate it, then we are following in the footsteps of our founding fathers who poured tea in the harbor and gathered under threat of arrest to discuss overthrowing the tyranny of England during the Revolutionary War.

The right to live and be free is so basic to our nation's core beliefs that I am amazed that a 'Debate' can exist on the subject. The oppression of personal opinion is really an outstanding definition of what it means to be un-American, in fact. Those who espouse suppressing free speech are demonizing the very behavior that resulted in the birth of our bastion of freedom and arsenal of democracy. Visit Arlington or Jefferson Barracks or the Punchbowl National Cemetery and walk through the acres of white headstones. Do you for one second feel that these patriotic men and women gave their lives defending someone's right to prevent a free voice from being heard? No, they died so that these protester's voices could ring free, loud and clear above the voices of the Saddam Hussein's of the tyrannical world.

What right, indeed, would one citizen of a free nation have to rule another citizen's voice unworthy of being heard? Who anoints this king or ruler who can choose to ignore another person's personal truth? Perhaps a Hitler or Japanese Emperor in the 1930's was deigned so powerful, but isn't that why we joined with other free nations to crush their tyranny? So many Patriots have shed their blood and given their lives just to ensure that those protesters COULD picket if they wish! Disagree with them? Then YOU make a sign and counter-protest; but please, never do not EVER feel that their voice is any less important than yours.

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