The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) released its latest National Speech Index survey analyzing American attitudes toward the state of free speech in America. The study’s findings show that Americans across political lines are deeply concerned about this issue.
The survey, part of FIRE’s ongoing America’s Political Pulse project, also revealed some rather disturbing opinions on people’s perspectives on speech and when it should or should not be allowed.
The survey found that “Most Americans, roughly two-thirds of them, are concerned about the direction freedom of speech is heading in this country”:
All Americans are apprehensive about the security of their First Amendment rights, with only 1 in 4 saying that their rights are “very” or “completely” secure, and about half (48%) saying their rights are “somewhat” secure.
However, very conservative and conservative Americans are more concerned than moderate, liberal, or very liberal Americans about the security of their rights. More than half of very conservative Americans (53%) think their First Amendment rights are “not at all” secure, while less than 1 in 5 very conservative Americans (16%) think their rights are “very” or “completely” secure.
Conservative Americans feel similarly about the security of their First Amendment rights, although they are not as concerned as very conservative Americans. About 1 in 3 conservative Americans (35%) said their First Amendment rights are “not at all” secure, while 16% said their rights are “very” or “completely” secure.
Very liberal and liberal Americans feel differently. More than 1 in 3 very liberal Americans (37%) and liberal Americans (34%) think that their First Amendment rights are “very” or “completely” secure. Only around 1 in 10 very liberal (14%) and liberal (12%) Americans said that their rights are “not at all” secure.
Moderate Americans are more concerned than very liberal or liberal Americans about the security of their First Amendment rights, but are less concerned than very conservative or conservative Americans. Roughly 1 in 4 moderate Americans (27%) said that their First Amendment rights are “very” or “completely” secure, and about 1 in 5 moderate Americans said that their rights are “not at all” secure.
FIRE Chief Research Advisor Sean Stevens explained, “Americans don’t agree on much these days, but they broadly agree that free speech is in peril this Election Day—even as they differ about which candidate poses the worse threat.”
Indeed, FIRE conducted another poll showing that Americans are not confident that either President Joe Biden or former President Donald Trump will protect free speech. Researchers found that only about 34 percent expressed high levels of confidence in either candidate, with 45 percent having “very little” or “no” confidence in Biden with about 47 percent feeling the same about Trump.
Also noteworthy is the National Speech Index’s findings on opinions on universities being political. About 53 percent believed educational institutions should “never” or “rarely” take political stances. This sentiment is strongest among conservative and very conservative respondents. On the other side, more than a third of very liberal respondents support colleges “often” or “always” take political positions.
One of the more disturbing findings is the growing acceptance of shutting down speech. The survey found that 53 percent of respondents believe using a heckler’s veto to silence speakers is at least “rarely acceptable.” About 19 percent believed using violence to shut down speech is acceptable. These viewpoints are not relegated only to college students.
Nathan Honeycutt, FIRE Research Fellow, highlighted this issue, saying “Anti-free speech attitudes among college students get a lot of attention for good reason, but everyday Americans off-campus could also benefit from a crash course in basic free speech principles.”
These findings paint a bleak picture of the future of free speech in America. If these trends persist, it will bring about even more polarization in an already divided society. The anxiety over the state of speech suggests that people of various political affiliations will have to come together to figure out the best ways to safeguard freedom of expression.
The fact that there appears to be a growing acceptance of suppressive tactics to silence certain viewpoints provides ample reason for concern about whether Americans will be able to express their views freely. Authoritarian elements in the country have been working hard to undermine the letter and spirit of the First Amendment. Social media censorship, the use of violence, and the promotion of societal influences to shut down various viewpoints are becoming far too prevalent. If this is allowed to continue, it will threaten one of America’s most cherished foundational values.