Critical Thinking Discussion Questions

Critical Thinking Discussion Questions

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Critical Thinking Discussion Questions

Readings Bollinger, Reddish, and Baker

The authors for this articles reiterate that free expression is a crucial human right. According to the authors, free speech reaffirms all other human rights, permitting society to progress and develop. However, Bollinger gives a convincing argument where he states that the capacity to express individual opinions and speak freely is important to bring about transformation in the society. The author contends that it would be difficult to achieve individual rights without free speech in the society. Consequently, the author feels that it is critical to promote policies that promote the ability for every person to speak freely, and equip members of the public with relevant resources needed to safeguard and preserve the right to free speech for everyone.

Readings: R.A.V v. St. Paul, Virginia v. Black, Demaske, Delgado, Matsuda

Authors develop arguments that help to understand the significance of restricting hate speech. The authors share the perception that hate speech poses serious threats for the cohesion and progress of a society as well as hampers the protection of the rule of law and human rights. However, Mari Matsuda seems to offer more convincing argument on why it is important to castigate hate speech. The author feels that hate speech is a crucial factor contributing towards racism in the U.S. and other parts of the globe. The need to overcome hate speech is the reason why the jury in R.A.V v. St. Paul struck down a petitioner’s appeal on a case involving hate speech.

Reading: Tinker v. Des Moines, Buller, Johnson

An evident topic that develops from the presented works is the issue of free expression of one’s self. Whereas everyone has the chance to express themselves, concerns emerge that some people lack the opportunity to be as expressive as they would desire. Consequently, such individuals do not enjoy the right to expression. The Tinker v. Des Moines case shows the importance of restricting expression in instances where it could cause conflicting views. In Buller’s view, individual expression is important and should not be avoided at any cost. On the other hand, Johnson emphasizes the need to regulate expressive forms that could result in discrimination, although the author appreciates that every person deserves the right to be expressive.

Reading: Demaske 2, Culver, Adler v. Board of education

Social media use is increasingly becoming rampant among learners and non-learners and it is expected that the use of these avenues are likely to become rampant in future. The position in this paper is that students should have the freedom to make posts on social media so long as they do not violate others or infringe on other people’s privacy. The right to express oneself is covered by the First Amendment that permits people to express themselves provided that they do not infringe of the privacy or well-being of others.

Readings: Bentley, Citron, Kaplan

The issue of sexual privacy continues to generate heated debates, with some people still believing that it is inappropriate to address such issues openly. The best way to balance the competing societal concerns with free speech is to inform people the importance of talking about such issues while telling them that keeping quiet about it could have far-reaching implications. Nonetheless, Citron feels that it is incorrect to use people’s sexual privacy for selfish gains, especially with the motive of generating money. The author refers to a scenario where the sexual privacy of many people is violated when their nudes are posted online without their consent. Hence, it is imperative to maintain balance on how people address or talk about sexual privacy.