Freedom of Speech History
Introduction to Freedom of Speech History
The modern concept of freedom of speech emerged gradually during the struggles of the Middle Ages. In England, for example, the struggle for freedom of speech extended from the 16th through the 18th centuries and was a vital part of the larger struggle for individual liberty and democratic government. The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which issued from the French Revolution of 1789, specifically affirmed freedom of speech as an inalienable right. The vital relationship of free expression to the cause of American liberty was evidenced in the guarantees of free speech in the constitutions of the states, beginning with that of Virginia in 1776. A proposed constitution for Massachusetts failed of adoption in 1778 because it did not contain a guarantee of liberty of utterance. Historians generally agree that the U.S. Constitution in its original form, without the guarantees of free speech and other liberties contained in the first ten amendments, would not have been ratified by the people (see Bill of Rights).
For three-quarters of a century after the establishment of the U.S., freedom of speech and all other rights were denied the black slaves until they were emancipated and were legally endowed with the same rights as white citizens. During this period freedom of speech was abridged by Congress in 1798 by passage of the Alien and Sedition Acts, which made it a criminal offense to foster opposition to the federal government. After the American Civil War, during the rapid industrialization of the U.S., problems of free speech arose in connection with efforts of unions to organize workers and to conduct strikes (see Trade Unions in the United States). A wave of patriotic intolerance in the U.S. culminated during World War I in the enactment by Congress of the Espionage Act of 1917, and in the enactment by a number of states after the war of criminal-syndicalism laws; under these laws, the right of free speech of foreigners, labor organizers, pacifists, radicals, and others was seriously abridged, and academic freedom was impaired. Abroad, free speech and other libertarian rights were abolished after World War I by the totalitarian governments of a number of European countries. The organization of communism as a worldwide movement dedicated to the overthrow of democratic governments raised a new question, particularly in the U.S., regarding the line to be drawn between sedition and the lawful right of free speech. The trial for conspiracy of 11 American Communist leaders in 1949 focused nationwide attention on this question. See also Civil Rights and Civil Liberties; Democracy; Liberty.” (1)
Resources
Notes and References
- Information about Freedom of Speech History in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia
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