Freedom of Speech

Freedom of Speech

Introduction

A university campus is a place designed for a specific purpose. It imparts education to students who register with it. Various kinds of activities keep taking place within the university premises. Checks on these activities have to be made. Speeches among individuals and groups of people also take place in the campus. Freedom of speech is the demand of a majority of people nowadays. It is the freedom to express yourself freely without any censorship.

Restriction on the types of speeches is one of the important aims of a university. These restrictions are essential to promote a healthy learning environment in the campus. Restricting speeches does not mean prohibiting it. Restriction requires a set of rules to be designed to prevent students from misusing their right of freedom of speech.

Discussion

Free Speech in Campus

Freedom of Speech is the liberty to speak without any restriction or censorship. It is the right of people to express their views and opinions on any topic through vocally or in writing. The issue of free speech in campus arises in many perspectives. Protests and demonstrations also fall in the domain of freedom of speech. Other forms of expression of students` views include leaflets, posters and communication via university computer networks. (Kaplin & Lee, 2009)

In most of the institutions, right of freedom of speech of students is protected. Students possess the right to demonstrate and protest in a peaceful manner. These institutions are the place where students are expected to think out of the box. Students think and come up with new ideas and inventions. Discussions on different topics open up their minds. Campuses are the ideal place where difficult issues get debated.

Public Forums

Public Forum is a place used by the public for exchanging ideas freely with each other. In campus, the outdoor spaces, e.g. campus sidewalks, park streets are included in public forums. These spaces are free for student use. Activities relating to free speech take place in such forums. Students speak with each other on the controversial issue like religion, politics or social issues, gather signatures on petitions etc. The protection of freedom of speech holds vital importance in public forums. Campuses set restrictions applied to everyone in the campus on the use of public forums (O`Donell & Ormand, 2012).

Silent Expression of Free Speech

There also exist silent expressions of freedom of speech. These include speech found on clothes of students ...