Free Expression

"It’s a free country!" remember when you used to say that all the time as a kid when someone told you not to do something? In America we feel that we can do or say anything because we are the land of the free. We are allowed to freely express our emotions and views whenever we like, but I do not believe that is true.

I feel that freedom of expression is a touchy subject. We tell ourselves we have this God given right, the freedom to do what we want when we want, however in reality and in today's world that is not exactly true. People constantly have to watch their mouths and their actions so that they do not come under scrutiny by their family, friends, and peers. Examples of this are shown in the media when high profile figures say or do something that they feel they have the right to do when they really don’t. They make a comment about someone or something and it ends up offending many people and then they are immediately scrutinized for their actions.

In reality we cannot say nor do anything we want. Deep down inside we might feel a certain way about a certain subject, but we will never let those emotions out because of the fear of how people will then perceive us after we make those actions. It really makes you wonder about what freedom of expression means. How much can we freely express? I feel that it varies from subject to subject. Obviously nobody wants to hurt or offend anyone but if we have to bite our tongues from time to time then are we truly allowed to express ourselves the way we want to? The answer is no. There is always a line on how far someone can go before it becomes wrong. In the end free expression does not always mean we truly have the freedom to express our selves, instead we are only allowed to express ourselves to a certain extent.

Related Links:

Freedom of speech defined

Free Expression in the classroom