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Democracy and free speech do not necessarily go together. Democracy is a system of government “by the people,” usually in the form of voting for representatives
by gregjor 6y ago
Democracy and free speech do not necessarily go together. Democracy is a system of government “by the people,” usually in the form of voting for representatives. Censorship and free speech do not necessarily follow from that political system, being more in the realm of basic human rights. Around the world democracy takes many forms. So do cultural and political notions of free speech, and government’s role regulating and censoring speech.
If the majority of Indian people want free speech, but their government does not honor that, then their democracy is dysfunctional and unrepresentative in that regard. A majority of Americans support stricter gun control, but our government does not honor that, so American democracy has its own dysfunctions.
- runeks 6y agoWhat if, in a democracy, 51% of voters agree to take away the voting rights of the remaining 49%? Would this still be a “democracy”? Related to this is the question of whether a democracy even makes sense without freedom of speech. How is the voter supposed to know who to vote for if the opposition party is not allowed to criticize the incumbents?
- gregjor 6y agoI don’t intend to argue theoreticals. I meant to point out that democracy and free speech are not the same thing. A hereditary monarchy with no democracy can allow free speech. A democratically elected government can impose censorship and limitations on speech.