Our country was founded on the premise of its citizens having specific freedoms. Freedom of speech, being the most important of these. The ability of Americans to communicate freely is what separates our country from other countries, many of which have far more regulations on what is acceptable and what is not. When government agencies, in this instant, schools, take liberty to enforce their policies outside of their campuses, individual rights are being taken away from citizens.
Students are citizens, and therefore, stand under the same umbrella of freedoms that are granted the rest of the population as stated in the Bill of Rights. Provisions have been made by our government to allow for censorship in certain instances. Internet posts by students should not be included in these instances unless a direct threat is made to a specific person or institution. Allowing a school to monitor and subsequently punish students for activity beyond its campus sets a bad precedence. It could lead to the widespread censorship of public thought.
There have been several incidents lately that have brought bullying over the internet to the forefront of the media. Tragically, some cyber-bully victims have committed suicide. As it is not within the scope of schools to police students, neither is it their fault if something occurs that is beyond the control of the school system. At some point individual accountability of all people must be expected.
As far as Mr. Hudsons article is concerned, I side with the students and the right to exercise free speech.
Hudson, David L. “Blogging.” New York : Chelsea House Publishers, 2008. 5 Feb. 2011.
No comments:
Post a Comment