Censorship

9 Pages 2272 Words

No other democratic society in the world permits personal
freedoms to the degree of the United States of America. The First Amendment
clearly voices a great American respect toward the freedom of religion. It
also prevents the government from "abridging the freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances." Since the early history of our
country, the protection of basic freedoms has been the highest priority to
Americans.
Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 is a fictitious
example of the evils of censorship in a world that is becoming
illiterate. In this book, the government convinces the public that
book reading is evil because it spreads harmful opinions and agitates
people against the government. The vast majority of people accept
this censorship of expression without question and are content to see
and hear only the government's propaganda. Bradbury's hidden opposition to
this form of censorship was apparent throughout the book and finally prevailed
in the end when his main character rebelled against the practice of
burning books.
Freedom of speech is constantly being challenged as is
evidenced in a recent court case where a Gloucester County school
district censored reviews of two R-rated movies from a school
newspaper. Superior Court Judge, Robert E. Francis ruled that the
student's rights were violated under the state Constitution. I feel
this is a major break through for students' rights because it limits
editorial control of school newspapers by educators and allows
students to print what they feel is important.
A newly proposed bill (A-557) would prevent school officials
from controlling the content of student publications. Critics of the
bill feel that "student journalists may be too young to understand the
responsibilities that come with free speech." This is a val...