davegschoolsuspension

In my opinion free speech is one of the most important things to this nation. Without it we are limited and cannot express how we feel. If the government or any organization limits what you can say then it is against our constitutional rights and our values. That’s why I oppose the students getting in trouble for what they said on the internet. I do not believe that schools have a right to get people in trouble for what they say on the internet or what they do out of school. If kids are doing drugs on school property the school has the right to suspend them etc. however, if they are not then they school cannot take action against the students. The same thing applies online. As long as the students do not use school computers the school should not be able to do anything. The only person that should be allowed to try to punish them is the person who was spoken against, but only if a law was broken. Unless it was slanderous or threatening, the individual written about does not have the right to do anything against the student. Therefore, the school cannot take any action against the student because it was out of school and out of their jurisdiction. The limits of free speech on the internet are the same in any other media. Anything that is illegal in print or on television is illegal on the internet, but nothing else. The internet is a space for free speech, and unless what is said is illegal or results in illegal actions it is protected by the First Amendment. YouTube has now been saying it is going to start censuring videos, especially containing profanity. While this is completely legal as they can provide whatever restrictions on their service that they want, less people will go there if they censure it. People access the internet for free speech and to hear other opinions, whether it is on politics, the world, or even something simple like a band. While many people on the internet are stupid and practically illiterate, they still have the freedom of speech and can voice their opinion as long as it is legal. Finally, the argument of schools limiting what people can wear. This is an incredibly controversial topic and is difficult, because there is a right answer however it doesn’t work in reality. Unless it is profane, public schools do not have the right to limit what people can wear as it is mandatory to attend, and is therefore breaking the freedom of speech. The government cannot stop you from wearing something unless it has a message on it that is illegal (such as being racist) or is profane, such as not wearing anything at all. However, if that was actually followed through with students would wear practically nothing and would not truly be appropriate, so what is actually correct cannot truly be followed through with. Since it is mandatory by the government to attend school they cannot legally limit what you wear beyond what is illegal in my opinion, however it does not work out in reality. That is how I feel about the school occurences. I feel that it is wrong and against our constitution and that we should not allow schools to do this as it is not in their right.