The results of a recent Pew Research Center poll on free speech should probably come as no surprise in this era of “trigger warnings” and “microaggressions.” But the poll found that Millennials were least likely to support free speech rights, particularly when that speech could be seen as offensive.
The Pew Research Center polled a random sampling of American adults after the Charlie Hebdo murders, asking if publishing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad was okay. Just over 50 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds believed this to be the case, according to the poll — the lowest of any age group.
This question gained relevance again this week after two gunmen opened fire at a community center in Garland, Texas that was serving as the location for a provocative contest for cartoon depictions of Prophet Muhammad.
Many of the commentary focused on the subject matter on the contest, not the shooters.
And it seems that a substantial proportion of millennials would get behind that. For them, the right to free speech ends where the right to not be offended begins.
