Eight Values of Freedom Expression

    When it comes to the eight values of freedom expression, I think all eight values are extremely important in achieving governmental balance. As part of a democratic government, we, the people have a civic duty to uphold in achieving that governmental balance. Being involved in the government by keeping up with news, voting in elections, and speaking up when something is unconstitutional or infringes on our basic rights is really important, and by doing all of these civic duties, you are fairly contributing to the United States government as a United States citizen.

    I think that promoting tolerance is the value of freedom expression that resonates with me the most because of how desperately important it is in society today. As a society, we are taught to respect each other and understand that while we may come from different backgrounds,  we can come together to respect each other and celebrate our differences. However, we are becoming more intolerant and divided as a society, thanks to social media and lack of communication with others in general. It is quite a drastic change to how our society usually runs, as our Founding Fathers knew how to create an accepting society. This was underlined in The First Amendment as tolerance theory and follows the belief that by promoting expressive freedoms, it will make individuals and institutions more open to ideas than they otherwise would be. With the prevalent rise of social media in recent years, it has taught us that we should not be tolerant of other peoples interests, hobbies, even as far as race and cultural backgrounds. Because of this, social media has become a dangerous place for some, who do not feel that they have a place of acceptance and tolerance in the world.

    Now usually, I would not be this huge advocate for promoting tolerance. This is not because I am some sort of mean person who hates free speech, I very much encourage it and think it is a wonderful freedom we are given as humans as part of The First Amendment. What worries me as of recent is how future generations may never learn the lessons of tolerance promotion and accepting people regardless of race, gender, background, etc. That social media has such a huge impact, that it could quite literally shape the future for coming generations. Even sometimes, I am guilty of not being as tolerant of people as I once was and try to work on that myself so that I can get the message across that I am an advocate of promotional tolerance. I really do not think we are all mean spirited people that actively try to hurt each other and shun others who do not agree with our standards. I think social media has gotten inside all of our heads just a little and messed them up in a pretty major way. We all have the potential to be tolerant and accepting of one another, we just need to take the time and action to make those important changes and strive for greatness.