Free Speech?

Amendment I: Freedom of religion, speech, and the press; rights of assembly and petition. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assembly, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. The first amendment of the bill of rights grants any person the right to say what is on their mind; peaceably. If an individual decides to speak his mind by running naked down the street at 2 a.m., it is not an exercise of first amendment rights.
The issue of free speech is continuously tied to racial slandering. It is true that people shouldn’t have to subject themselves to hateful behavior but it is a stretch to label all free speech as an opportunity to slander minorities. Prejudice is defined as “a partiality that prevents objective consideration of an issue or situation. I feel that most people exhibit prejudice in their lives, or at least realize they were about to and learned from the experience.
When the Administration of a learning Institution finds itself making decisions that opposing groups feel heartfelt about they have to be careful to avoid their own prejudice. On one hand the institution is a leader; it is responsible for the education of many people and must strive to be at its best, even when public opinion says no. Unfortunately if this policy is adhered to an institution may find itself teaching to empty halls. As one example stated in the article Hate cannot be tolerated, people of color will enroll in different institutions where the environment is healthier (Delgado 126).
When it comes to minorities I feel that many play the “race card” frequently. I myself have been a victim of racism at the hands of the so called “minorities”. To label all people of color racist or to limit the freedom of all for the actions of a few would categorize me as prejudiced as well. Sure, there are some mean people in this world. The reasons are many but the results are the same and the bully feels better after. Personally I would rather have unlimited speech in any manner. Simply for the fact that I know prejudice exists and if I’m going to avoid it I need to know where it lives. I would rather take a barb in public than a bat in an alley.

Delgado, Richard. “Hate cannot be tolerated.” Goshgarian, Gary. What Matters in America. New York: Pearson Education Inc., 2007. 126-133.