As the very few of you who read this blog know I took down a post last week that pointed out questionable graphic design/computer practices. The fact is I heard some feedback and there was concern for what was posted, that it would come back to haunt me. I took it down because I really didn't think the post was worth any tension.
BUT… this does bring up a much larger issue which my Dad and my Grandfather went to face wars (Vietnam & WWII) for; our freedoms of speech granted to us by our U.S. constitution. We are truly blessed to live in a nation such as this—but we must never leave the vigil of guarding these rights. Certain organizations/people may think they have the right to silence their own fellow citizens in this country, but they are dead wrong.
As designers/visual communicators and as U.S. citizens this issue is so very important, especially in this booming information age. Imagine having this information controlled/filtered by the elite few. You may think that the media already does this filtering, which may be true, but there are many increasing ways to get information through alternative news/information/viewpoint sources such as (in a smaller extent) this blog. These venues must be bolstered with our support as citizens to send a clear message that the common citizen ideals, thoughts and ideas still makes a profound difference in this country.
Wikipedia explains freedom of speech as this:
Freedom of speech is the concept of the inherent human right to voice one's opinion publicly without fear of censorship or punishment. The right is preserved in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is granted formal recognition by the laws of most nations. Nonetheless the degree to which the right is upheld in practice varies greatly from one nation to another. In many nations, particularly those with relatively authoritarian forms of government, overt government censorship is enforced…
Freedom of speech is still on of the many things that makes this country great. Lets all do our part to keep it that way.
2 comments:
The Constitution basically says that the *government* won't censor or punish your free speach.
The overwelming majority of businesses don't have such a clause in their handbooks.
In any case, freedom of speech is mostly a freedom from imprisonment and adjunct to peaceable assembly thing. There can never truely be freedom 'from the consequences' of speech, which is often these days the case that is argued for.
It'd be cool though, like tourettes on a society-wide scale :)
Yeah I hear you on the corporate "hand book" thing Chris.
I guess this IS about arguing about the 'consequences' of free speech when an employee is off the clock.
Not to say I am for defamation or hate-speech of any kind.
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