Henry Ward Beecher Quotes

I prefer a little free speech to no free speech at all; but how many have free speech or the chance or the mind for it; and is not free speech here as elsewhere clamped down on in ratio of its freedom and danger?

Censorship always defeats it own purpose, for it creates in the end the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion.

The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.

Every censorship, however good its intent, degenerates inevitably into tyranny.

In America–as elsewhere–free speech is confined to the dead.

Whoever would overthrow the liberty of a nation must begin by subduing the freeness of speech.

Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.

If there is no free speech, every single life has lived in vain

The enemies of freedom do not argue; they shout and they shoot.

We need a free media, not just freedom of speech.

I know of no country in which there is so little independence of mind and real freedom of discussion as in America.

When someone has to intervene to defend the liberty of the press, that society is sick.

I mean, they censor your work when they're scared of it.

A state of society where men may not speak their minds cannot long endure.

Books won't stay banned. They won't burn. Ideas won't go to jail.

I hate censorship, man. I really do.

Once you permit those who are convinced of their own superior rightness to censor and silence and suppress those who hold contrary opinions, just at that moment the citadel has been surrendered.

Freedom is the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.

The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion.

I keep telling myself to calm down, to take less of an interest in things and not to get so excited, but I still care a lot about liberty, freedom of speech and expression, and fairness in journalism.

History has demonstrated that efforts to censure and control communication will not succeed.

Free speech is meant to protect unpopular speech. Popular speech, by definition, needs no protection.

Censorship reflects a society's lack of confidence in itself.

I do not favor the gag order.

You can't cheer when political officials punish the expression of views you dislike and then expect to be taken seriously when you wrap yourself in the banner of free speech in order to protest state punishment of views you like and share.