Last week, the Free Speech Union hosted the launch of Jacob Mchangama’s new book Free Speech: A Global History From Socrates to Social Media, in conjunction with the Academy of Ideas. Jacob gave a short lecture, giving the audience a whistle-stop tour of the history of free speech, then Dr. Joanna Williams and I took turns to respond and Claire Fox did her best to moderate. We then had a lively Q&A. The whole thing is available as a podcast here. Well worth a listen.
Stop Press: You can read a summary of Jacob Mchangama’s argument in the March/April issue of Foreign Affairs here.
Discussion
Comments
This week across the site:
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Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.
If anyone is attending and they feel up to it, maybe someone can ask Toby who Dr Sam Bailey was denied an article as right to reply to Dr Watson’s (IMHO) hit piece last week.
I’m a free speech absolutist. That includes pointing out that Sir Chris Whitty is a Class A Cunt.
Actually, in the West nowadays, what matters far more than free speech is punishment of criminals in government, medicine, the media etc.
Never ending fulminating about the right to open your mouth is rather less important than putting in prison those that would kill your children, kill your parents, steal your hard-earned wealth, lie 24/7 with impunity and expect no come back for doing so.
Did JW take the opposite position?!
Interesting discussion, thanks for sharing Toby.
“Why Free Speech Matters”
“Profanity and abuse will be removed and may lead to a permanent ban.”
“How Free Speech Died”
the only argument to defend free speech is as follows “if I can have my free speech so can anyone else, if you can have your free speech but deny mine, then you cannot have your free speech either”