Hate Speech Should Be Covered Under The First Amendment Essay

If you were to ask many Americans whether hate speech was covered under the first amendment, many would be surprised to find out that in most circumstances it is protected. For the augment essay, I plan to argue that hate speech should be covered under the first amendment, and its coverage is essential to the idea of free speech. As an African-American male growing up in the South, hate speech was not an idea to be debated or a conceptual item to be reflected upon. It was the reality, as raw and real as the heat on a hot summer's day. I experienced hate speech before I was even old enough to understand it. After years of being called every racial slur in the book, I realized that even hate speech could serve a purpose. This combined with the current conversation surrounding Donald Trump's campaign and its rhetoric is why I
Allowing people to speak freely is easy when what they say is not offensive. Being free to say things that offend or insult other groups of people may be necessary to challenge those in power or to identify problems within society. I am sure some would argue that hate speech serves no purpose but to offend and divide. To that argument, I would quickly point out that we should not be afraid of what people say, write, or think. You don't fight ideas by attempting to silence them. You fight them with better ideas. Also, who decides what is offensive? For example, if someone said, “I'm sick of Black people killing each other in Chicago”, some would find that offensive, but is that hate speech? We can easily say no, but it would not be our decision. Once a law is in place, those in charge decide how it is implemented. This is the other problem with limiting free speech, those in power would set and interpret the law. History is littered with examples of people gaining power then using that power to silence their