The Eight Values of Free Expression

            The Eight Values of Free Expression are: Marketplace of Ideas, Participation in Self-Government, Stable Change, Individual Self-Fulfillment, Check on Governmental Power, Promote Tolerance, Promote Innovation, and Protect Dissent. The Marketplace of Ideas was suggested by John Milton. This value suggests that if you put truth and falsehood up against each other, the truth will always come out on top. The Participation in Self-Government was suggested by Alexander Meiklejohn. This suggests that electoral candidates and political policies shouldn’t be restricted in their ability to communicate positions in order for citizens to be able to vote wisely. Stable Change, known as the “Safety Valve”, was suggested by Benedict Spinoza. This suggests that citizens will be less violent if the society they live in enables them to speak freely and “vent” about their anger. By allowing the alienated and discontented to speak freely, the government can identify potentially dangerous groups easier. Individual Self-Fulfillment was suggested by C. Edwin Baker.  This enables citizens to have the freedom of speech. He believed that this allows citizens to create their own identity. Check on Governmental Power was suggested by Vince Blasi. This enables citizens to learn about abuses of power, in other words, freedom of the press. This ties into the check-and-balance system which restrains government power and abuse of power. Promote Tolerance was suggested by Lee Bollinger. This suggests that the First Amendment protects hate speech and teaches us to be more tolerant in other aspects of life. Ultimately, it suggests that a more tolerant society is a better society.  Promote Innovation was suggested by Jack Balkin. This suggests that a community that values the freedom of speech is more diverse and innovative. Protect Dissent was suggested by Steve Shiffrin. This suggests that minority views as well as unpopular views are protected by the first Amendment. It also states that citizens have a duty to criticize the government. 

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            All of these values are very important to me, but I would have to say that the one that resonates with me most is the Marketplace of Ideas, otherwise known as the “Discovery of Truth”. Without truth, we wouldn’t know what to believe in. Our knowledge of all things we know to exist would be limited. The one that feels most important to me is Check on Governmental Power, or the “Watchdog Role”. This ensures that all citizens are aware of abuses of power. If citizens aren’t aware of abuses of power, then they wouldn’t be able to do something about the abuses of power. The government should only be allowed to have too much power and it’s our job as citizens to make sure they don’t abuse it. The check-and-balance system keeps us all in check, and most importantly, keeps the government in check. The one that’s most personal to me is Individual Self-Fulfillment. If we didn’t have Self-Actualization, I wouldn’t be who I am today, none of us would. This enables us to create our own identity rather than having our own identity created for us. The value of expression that I see in action today is Protect Dissent. Everything going on with Black Lives Matter is protecting minority views. There have been many protests in which people stand up to and disagree with the government.