Freedom of speech is one of the bedrock values our nation was built upon. The freedom to speak our minds freely and make our voices heard in the public square enables reasoned debate. It thereby allows the democratic process to decide on the best solutions for the challenges we face. When each side is able to make its case to the public, discerning citizens can use their common sense to guide them in their vote.
For this reason, our founders passed the First Amendment to secure this fundamental right in our Constitution and restrain the government from suppressing the political speech of its citizens. This bears note as we have watched one of the biggest scandals of our generation unfold. The government worked behind the scenes with Big Tech companies to discredit, deplatform, and stifle conservative voices. This effort was pursued with the aim of interfering in our democratic process.
Such restrictions on our most fundamental liberties aren’t just happening at the national level. They’re happening in the states, too, and all conservatives should stand firm in opposition to state government violations of our rights.
Unsurprisingly, one example comes from California. A new law was recently passed here laying the groundwork for doctors to lose their licenses if they disseminate what the state deems “misinformation or disinformation” related to COVID-19. This speech will now be considered a violation of professional conduct.
As a former pediatric neurosurgeon, I can attest that this is nothing more than an implied threat to all of California’s doctors: toe the party line, or lose your medical license, business, and source of income. In this case, it is particularly concerning because so much of what we now know to be true about COVID-19 was formerly considered misinformation.
These restrictions will have not just a chilling effect on free speech but also on the practice of medicine itself. All scientific discovery is a series of hypotheses, trials, errors, and adjustments in pursuit of truth. Only by this process of free and open inquiry can we find out our mistakes, correct them, and make progress moving forward. I can say with absolute certainty that politics has no place in science. This fundamental concept is one the Left likes to commandeer, yet contradicts time and again with actions such as these. In this case, we know exactly who it is that is going to be doing the teaching.
Another example comes from New Jersey, where Gov. Phil Murphy recently signed into law a requirement that all K-12 students undergo a “media literacy” training program each year to combat disinformation and “sustained attacks” on “our democracy.” Again, the problem isn’t so much that we are aiming to combat falsehood; the problem is determining who gets to decide what is true and what is false. Nationally, teachers give 94% of their
political donations
to Democrats.
So many of the most explosive stories from the last few years, like the Russian collusion hoax, have been shaped by untruths. Other stories, such as the Hunter Biden laptop scandal, have turned out to be true, even though voices trying to bring attention to the story were silenced across every facet of the public square.
Still, both of these bills particularly concern me because two of my passions are medicine and education. The restrictions on free and open inquiry are sure to stifle the progress we would otherwise make in both of these fields.
As our forefathers knew, freedom of speech is a bedrock value to any free and prosperous society. Without the ability to express one’s mind in the public square, self-government becomes impossible. There’s a reason that the very first amendment to our Constitution was passed in order to protect this fundamental right, and now it’s up to all of us to continue to defend it.
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Dr. Ben Carson is the Founder and Chairman of the
American Cornerstone Institute
and the former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
