Censoring the American Way
“Congress shall make no law representing an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or of the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and petition the Government for a redress of Grievances”(Bender, n-pag.). With such a statement in the constitution, one would never think that someone could have the power to block something away from them. What gives these people the right to censor what others see, read or hear? The First Amendment and Bill of Rights act as checks in the United States, but other countries do not have such luxuries. The fact is people are constantly censored. Censorship is not only unconstitutional in the United States, it also occurs anywhere and some foreign governments do not even try to block it. “In free societies, you must have a free play of ideas”(Stay, p. 25). When looking at the first amendment and constitution, the reader would think that the documents would keep a so called free play of ideas. The truth is, people in the United States will try to censor anything, books, comics, movies, or cds. Censorship groups and organizations have and are still trying to censor them all. This brings up the question of the first amendment, does it not say freedom of speech, which embodies the person’s right to express their own views openly and govern their lives without censorship? Obviously these groups believe that they can better make life judgments for others beside themselves. By the censors doing this; they take the constitution, the building block of the United States of America, and give it a direct smack in the face. What are the censors afraid of? Censors censor things primarily on the basis of feeling threatened by free expression, they try to protect their own basic rights(“Censorship”, p.345).