Our society has a problem that has been building for two decades. The idea of being politically correct has become a scab on American society because of the limitations it puts on one’s right to express their beliefs. We live in a society that will cease to be free if limits imposed on First Amendment rights are not noticed, or if nothing is done about them. It is not socially acceptable to criticize those who speak out for or against homosexuality, racism, flag burning, abortion or any other controversial issue America faces today. Yet, because of the Constitution, written by the founding fathers of this country, it is a given right to do so. It is actually pleasing to see that everyone in our country does not agree on some of these issues because through research and debate, society will possibly advance and make the right decisions about these controversies and many others. However, the same society must realize that once decisions are made, debate does not cease. There will always be dissenters, those who do not agree with the majority, and they have the right to speak and not be punished simply because they have different views.
These dissenters have been called many names throughout history, such as troublemakers, revolutionaries, crazies or radicals. Some of the most revered and hated people in history were labeled by these names. One does not have to look far for hated individuals like Adolf Hitler, Fidel Castro and Benedict Arnold. Those revered by much of American society are also easy to come by. Names like Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr. and Jesus Christ come to mind when one thinks of revolutionaries. Some were bad, and some were good, but if all had been worried about being politically correct, where would America and the rest of the world currently stand?
This is not to say that people should intentionally offend one another. It is not a necessary part of life. It only means that being politically correct should not be allowed to restrict the things one says or does. Offense will be taken at times, but that is a part of living in a free society. I heard James Meredith speak last week, and he offended almost everyone in the room. I was definitely offended at being called a second-class citizen, but in America, it is his right to speak his mind, and the right to free speech must be celebrated and used without the worry of being politically correct. Americans have the right to free speech and the right to ignore what we do not believe, but we do not have the right to not be offended. Society must make a choice as to what rights it wants. If the right to free speech is more important to people than the right not to be offended, then political correctness should not even be an afterthought in an American’s mind.
Society always pays attention to the individuals who suffer when treated in a manner that is not politically correct. Yet, these people are not true victims. In this country, more often than not, these individuals can go home to a good meal and bed and start the next day afresh. The real victims in the world today are those who cannot speak for themselves. The victims are women in Afghanistan who are not able to go through a single day without the threat of physical abuse, Cubans who go to bed hungry every night and have no right to say or do anything about it or Third- World children who work in sweatshops and have no rights or choices because of political and economic barriers. Someone claiming to be a victim because they have been offended is no reason to cause a social uproar and a right-threatening movement known as political correctness. As the right to speak one’s mind begins to be looked down upon, it will slowly be purged from American ideology. The pressure of society’s majority has rid or tried to rid this nation of many things. If free speech becomes one of these, who is to say that we cannot become like the Afghani women, Cubans or Third-World children who are not able to speak in their own defense?
As long as we the people are willing to fight for the rights guaranteed to us, we will continue to be free. This fight could be against politicians, foreign powers or ideals pushed on us from society. No matter who the struggle is against, it must always be fought with all our power and diligence. The loss of one right leads to the loss of more, leading to the loss of freedom. Freedom of speech is the most important right in the Constitution. Without it, ideas cannot be spread, wrongs cannot be righted and men cannot be free.
-Jordan Rinehart