Hate Hunters Should Not Muffle Free Speech

Re “Friends of Free Speech, a Newspaper Needs You,” July 28:

I always have mixed feelings when I read commentary such as Paul Pflueger’s.

On the one hand I want to praise the newspaper for printing something about free speech. On the other hand, I want to berate the newspaper for talking out of both sides of its corporate mouth about the issue.

Free speech truly is under assault. There’s nothing new in this; this has been going on since there has been speech. Most intelligent people and most major newspapers immediately get their hackles up when government tries to stop free speech--and, well they should. However, when our private sector bigots and free speech haters try to stop free speech, newspapers, including The Times, give them free ink to push their tyranny.

The real danger, right now, right here, to free speech is coming not from government but from private sector hate hunters who quickly try to shut people up by calling their exercise of free speech “hate” or “racism” or any of a number of other such terms, when, in many cases, the exercise of free speech contains no racial hatred but simply takes on controversial subjects. Sure, the hate hunters also have free-speech rights, but many times they are acting like the witch hunters of old.

Sure, we should make sure high school reporters and editors have the right to their free speech, unencumbered by school officials. But we also need to make sure that adults have their free speech rights, unencumbered by hate hunters who in the name of political correctness think they can tell people what is acceptable speech and what isn’t.

H. Millard

Costa Mesa

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The California Education Code goes out of its way to protect the First Amendment rights of students. The law is very clear about what adults may censor in school publications: that which is deemed libelous or obscene, encourages students to break the law or threatens to disrupt the orderly operation of the school.

Part of a journalism advisor’s responsibility is to teach respect for the freedom of expression that is guaranteed by our Constitution and is fundamental to a democracy. The Garden Grove newspaper advisor should fight for her students’ right to express dissenting opinions and for her own job.

Kris Evans

Laguna Beach