Elsa Holland
Our voices can stretch through the land of the free, the valleys, and the sea. Our voices
are mighty like a violent storm, dangerous, yes, but powerful all the same. With the freedom of
speech comes the freedom to change; change minds and change worlds, this is the beauty that
comes with power, but the danger that comes with beauty. Without the freedom of speech, we as
citizens would be powerless, silent prisoners to a tyrannical government. Our words can be
powerful weapons to encourage strength, and inspire confidence, but the words we speak are
sometimes turned against our own. We must use our freedom for the better because without it we
are weak, but with the freedom of speech and a willingness towards acceptance, we can become
a country united, rather than a country divided.
As American citizens, we are nothing without our right to free speech. Freedom of speech
is what allows us to fight for what we believe is right, and protest that which we believe to be
wrong. Our first amendment right is also what keeps our government a democracy, rather than a
tyranny. It also gives us the right to speak out on inequality within our country, for example,
Martin Luther King Jr.’s infamous speech against racial inequality. In his I have a Dream speech,
he preaches of a world where all races could be equal, a world in which “all of God's children,
Black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join
hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: Free at last. Free at last. Thank God
almighty, we are free at last.” [King] His speech incited a positive change that we are still
fighting for to this day, and without the impact of his words, the separation between races would
be much worse. And while the right to free speech has had a majorly positive change in that
regard, the freedom of speech can be abused.
The United States of America has a history of being a strong fighter in the conflicts that
have challenged us, but in recent years most of the fighting has been happening within the
country. The United States has become divided over opinions and politics, and people's
unwillingness to listen, because with the freedom to talk comes the responsibility to listen and to
understand. You can speak your mind to a closed door all you like, but no real change will
happen unless you open that door and speak your truth to the audience inside. And through all of
the political divide between Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, people have
lost the willingness to listen. This has made us as a country unwilling to communicate, and
therefore weak. We can not be the United States of America if we remain divided over political
preferences and opinions. Our rights endowed to us by the First Amendment are absolutely vital
to a successful, thriving country, but they must be exercised correctly, with tolerance and
responsibility.
There is a spark ignited within every American, a spark that turned into a flame, and a
flame that grows larger and larger every day. This raging fire is one thing all Americans have in
common, but what it chooses to burn is where the divide begins. But so long as we have our
voices and our freedom of speech, we can fan each other's flames, and fight alongside our fellow
Americans, not against. With the power of our voices, we can become a country united, rather
than divided.
Works Cited
King, Martin Luther. “I Have a Dream.” March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom,
Aug. 28, 1963, Lincoln Memorial, Washington DC.