Freedom of speech is the hallmark of a free society. Throughout history, we have seen the repercussions of restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of the press around the world. Yet today many Americans see no danger in the restriction of those freedoms, some even advocating for government restrictions.
Today our freedoms are being restricted under the guise of "misinformation." The Biden administration, along with leftist institutions and their supporters, believes that the government may intervene amongst speech that perpetuates any misinformation, particularly regarding COVID and the COVID vaccine.
In a White House press briefing earlier this month, the Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy defined "misinformation" as "false, inaccurate, or misleading information about health, according to the best evidence at the time." This definition is worrisome for three reasons:
1. The definition lacks the nuance necessary in individual health issues.
Health is not collective. Health refers to one person's physical and mental wellbeing. So many attributes of health are subjective and depend on the individual in question. Just as the virus affects different people in different ways, the concept of "health information" will vary for different people, even within the realms of scientific data.
This black-and-white, one-size-fits-all definition of health misinformation is dangerous. It means there is now one decision you must make regarding your health—a decision the government has taken away from you.
2. The First Amendment protects misinformation.
The amendment does not solely protect true speech, accurate speech, kind speech, or well-evidenced speech. The First Amendment, which I encourage every American to memorize, begins as follows:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press."
The government has no right—and is in fact forbidden by the Constitution—to hinder free speech, even if that speech is misinformed.
3. The current administration has spread its own misinformation.
In March of 2020, Dr. Fauci told Americans not to wear masks before the CDC released its mask recommendations. Months later, when asked why he told Americans to not wear masks, Fauci claimed he changed his advice to keep up with "new" science, despite the fact that studies claiming masks help prevent transmission had been released long before his statement. After having been disproven, Fauci admitted to lying, claiming the administration was worried about a mask shortage amongst healthcare workers.
Throughout history, many attacks on freedom have been framed as a means to protect the people from some external threat (a threat such as COVID, perhaps?) such as the Bolshevik's Decree of the Press. The decree restricted the free press, claiming to protect the Russian people from "yellow journalism" and bourgeois lies (or in today's language, "misinformation").
The Bolsheviks assured the Russian people that these measures were temporary, but the restrictions continued for decades and eventually peaked under Joseph Stalin. Our current administration, however, has not even bothered to convince the American people that these measures are temporary. In fact, as the Surgeon General explained, "this is just the beginning,"
