Freedom of Speech at the Highest Degree

The freedom of speech that is granted to all of us through the First Amendment of our Constitution seems to be an easy concept to understand. It is also easy to exercise this freedom when it comes to matters involving ourselves or others of like mindedness, but it is far more challenging to give others a platform to exercise that same freedom when the ideas are the polar opposite of what we hold to be true or important.

This idea became evident when Lee Bollinger, the president of Columbia University invited Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the president of Iran to speak at his university. The article in the New York Times gives a great summary of the events of that day. Many people were outraged by the invitation, considering Iran has been labeled by our government as a terrorist state and because Ahmadinejad has so many radical ideas. I do not believe that inviting Ahmadinejad to speak is in any way condoning his acts or his ideals, but highlights what our country's values are all about. Inviting such a person to speak at one of our most respected institutions speaks volumes about the freedoms we enjoy in this country. I think Mr. Bollinger explained this better then I ever could in his introduction speech that day.