Is the First Amendment considering retirement?

What is happening to our first amendment? Is it only a matter of time before it is stripped away totally? For those who does not what the first amendment say in full, here is a reminder:

“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; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

In the era that we live in today, some people believe that it is necessary to censor free speech because people may be offended by certain language. However, anytime that you allow one thing to be censored; it opens the door for other things to be considered for censorship too.

Let's take a look at some examples:

(1) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, being one of the great bestselling American novels, has been recently censored. This bestselling novel that has had countless reprintings, translations in several languages, and even turned into a movie was re-edited to cope with sensitive audiences. The words, “nigger” and “injun”, found in the book, were removed and replaced with words like “slave”. Places like Concord Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library, Taylor Michigan schools, Illinois high schools, Miami Dade Junior College, school libraries in Caddo Paris Louisiana, Terrebone Parish public schools in Louisiana, National Cathedral School in Washington DC, East San Jose high schools in California are just a few places that have banned the original Huckleberry Finn books from their institutions. http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_newsroom/20110104/en_yblog_newsroom/huck-finn-gets-some-changes

While the original version of the book is still in circulation, I wonder if Mark Twain would have allowed a censored version to be printed.

(2) To Kill A Mockingbird, a Pulitzer Prize novel, still remains a classic in modern American literature. However, it has been challenged many times and eventually removed from Southwood High School, an advanced reading placement list in Lindale Texas, and Oklahoma schools because of profane language and certain prejudice and sexual themes used (two examples are the terms “whore lady” and “nigger”). http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,33108,00.html    http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20100924/en_ac/6836558_banned_books_week_to_kill_a_mockingbird 

(3) A Clockwork Orange is a dystopian novel in which the film was initially rated X and nominated for 4 Academy Awards. It was banned for its objectionable language and removed from schools in Westport Massachusetts, Aurora Colorado and Rhode Island. http://www.highlands.edu/academics/library/banned/books.htm   http://www.huffingtonpost.com/american.../banned-books-movies_b_738533.html    http://specials.msn.com/A-List/Lifestyle/Banned-Books.aspx?cp-documentid=27932689&imageindex=17&cp-searchtext=%27A%20Clockwork%20Orange%27&FORM=MSNIIT

Will this measure become the model for all printed media? Eventually, even if the original version is still in circulation, the censored version will become more popular because readers of another race do not want to appear prejudice or black people do not want to be offended by the material. Why can't they use labels like “parental advisory / explicit content” as we find on music CDs? However, I can assume people making an argument as censored books is like the clean version of a music CD. Music is much more popular and influential than print media which explains why there is more censorship. The majority of people are exposed to today's music without opting in to listen to it. You hear it in nightclubs, house parties, schools, and churches. You also hear it from TV commercials and from vehicles with loud stereo systems. No one has ever put a gun to your head and forced you to read a book. Neither has anyone glued a book to your hands. Believe it or not, we are forced to listen to music while books are totally voluntarily (with the exception of students).

We should consider carefully the measures that are being taken to censor the first amendment. Again, once you accept something to be censored, you allow anything else to be considered for censorship. Hate speech is constitutionally protected even if it is false or provocative. Several European countries like England, France, and Germany have laws that bans hate speech (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/12/us/12hate.html ). While in some cases, certain language may be offensive to some people; our first amendment must remain absolute. Ask yourself, Who will be the judge(s) in deciding what phrases are acceptable? Free speech is the tool that protects us from tyranny which is why the Constitution protects it. Live in freedom or die by tyranny (LIVE FREE OR DIE).