At the 39th annual Silha Lecture, Jacob Mchangama delves into the ongoing debates over speech restrictions, revealing how they mirror arguments of the past. Through five key lessons from history, he unpacks the complexities of free speech in the digital age, offering a nuanced perspective on the challenges we face today.

Here are some excerpts from Jacob’s speech. Watch the full video below:

“We stand at a critical moment in history, less than a month away from what might be one of the most consequential elections in modern American history, and exactly a year after the horrific terrorist attack on Israel on October 7th, whose aftermath led to heated protests around the globe, including on U.S. college campuses. The stakes feel higher than ever, and you can feel it in the sharp divisions of opinion that face off. And this polarization is amplified by social media and new technologies like Generative AI, which many fear is accelerating the spread of misinformation and deepening our political fractures. And, so it is no surprise I think a lot of Americans, and maybe some of you as well, are grappling with a fundamental question: Do we have too much free speech? Has U.S. free speech exceptionalism been weaponized against democracy itself? Have the values that we hold dear, like tolerance, equality, and truth become casualties of blind worship of free speech?”

“These are not hypothetical questions. Many believe it’s time to rethink the First Amendment. . .  

“These questions may seem pressing and new, but in reality, they are echoes of debates that we’ve been having for centuries. And tonight, I’d like to offer five lessons from history that may shed some light on these issues and maybe guide us towards a future where free speech is once again viewed not as a threat, but as a foundation of democracy itself.”

 

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Jacob Mchangama is the Founder and Executive Director of The Future of Free Speech. He is also a research professor at Vanderbilt University and a Senior Fellow at The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE).