Michael J. Knowles Quotes

If government were free to suppress disfavored speech by preventing potential speakers from being paid, there would not be much left of the 1st Amendment.

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

Inconvenience does not absolve the government of its obligation to tolerate speech

If there is a bedrock principle of the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.

That is my major concern: writers who are in prison for writing.

Free speech rights means that government officials are barred from creating lists of approved and disapproved political ideas and then using the power of the state to enforce those preferences.

Can someone within that society walk into the town square and say what they want without fear of being punished for his or her views? If so, then that society is a free society. If not, it is a fear society.

In America we don’t apologize for opinions, that’s why we have a 1st Amendment. If we can’t discuss even controversial opinions in the pages of our newspapers, where are we going to do it?

In a democracy, expressing disagreement with the government’s actions does not amount to sedition or insurrection—it is, and must remain, protected speech.

Fear of serious injury alone cannot justify suppression of free speech and assembly.

The government may not prohibit expression simply because it disagrees with its message.

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

Free speech is not a bogus issue. It is an issue.

Flag-burning is plain wrong, and I'll stand up for free speech - even speech I don't like.

It's impossible to utilize your right to free speech in the way you truly deserve and not suffer repercussions on any level.

I just think political correctness is a limitation on our First Amendment freedoms.

We congratulate American freedom of speech and all who still believe in it.

Individuals have a right to freedom of speech.

As entertainers, you're afraid [about] loss of income - but if other people start going to jail for free speech, then we've lost this great thing that America is, and I'd like to keep that.

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

Freedom of speech is a great thing and we have said nothing that is not allowed.

The freedom to speak is meaningless without the corollary freedom to keep silent.

Free speech not only lives, it rocks!

Whether some of us may like it or not, the Supreme Court has interpreted the First [Amendment] as protecting speech that is indecent but not obscene.

I think free speech is probably the coolest thing we have in this country, and again, you can label it hate speech and dismiss it, and then you're allowed to censor it.