(U-WIRE) CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - You'd think that with all the fuss made over freedom of speech, attacks that attempt to curb its fair application would eventually cease. Yet, time after time, certain politicians flagrantly neglect this right.
Just this past month, in fact, New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (R) demonstrated his arrogance and short-sightedness by manipulating the First Amendment right. The mayor's "quality of life" campaign is an attempt to restore morality and purity to the streets of New York, and to cut down on crime and noise, among other things. As part of his campaign, Giuliani plans to close over 100 pornographic businesses near New York's famous Times Square. The businesses include peep shows, strip bars and porn video stores, some of which Giuliani apparently thought reflected poorly on New York City.
Though the proprietors of those shops recognize that their Constitutional rights have been violated, New York City's Court of Appeals upheld Giuliani's decision, saying it violates no rights. Although a federal court temporarily suspended Giuliani's plan late last month, the shop owners probably will lose this battle.
Somehow, the New York State Court of Appeals ruled that Giuliani's plan didn't violate the rights of the shop owners in any way. The Court identified no infringement of the owners' freedom of speech. What were they thinking? Giuliani's plan is a blatant violation of rights, and if these stores were anything but pornographic distributors, the Court most certainly would have ruled the other way.
It just goes to show you: Whether Democrat or Republican, politicians seem to treat freedom of speech as a flexible clause to our Constitution. Politicians are the first to defend freedom of speech as a universal right, but often act adversely, attempting to ban "unhealthy" television shows, record labels or generally undesirable entities. Many have twisted and distorted the right to freedom of speech over the years, using it as a means to achieve their own personal goals.
If recognized properly, free speech would be granted to everyone under every circumstance. In the long run, it might help strengthen our nations' morality, despite the fact that children might be exposed to explicit violence and sex. If parents could use these negative influences as examples of what not to do, children finally might receive the lesson in morality that they always have needed. Adolescents need to be taught that violence and explicit sex (sometimes) are wrong, but they also must be taught tolerance and compassion Censorship teaches kids that if we don't like something, we quickly obliterate it, without any regard for compromise or fairness.
Giuliani has done his small part to uphold his belief. In the process, he has proven himself just another typical politician, lobbying for the advancement of his own personal agenda, despite the unjust consequences. This isn't the first time Giuliani has overseen people's Constitutional rights, either. Last year Giuliani ordered that the New Yorker magazine remove from city buses an ad that poked fun at the mayor, another obviously unconstitutional move that federal courts eventually overturned.
Much of the problem, as always, lies with the American public. Many Americans, whether conservative or liberal, white or black, don't want their children exposed to sex and violence. That's fine, although many of those parents are so anti-filth that they are perfectly willing to violate people's Constitutional rights to assure a "healthy" environment. Many parents put a lifetime's worth of time and effort into ensuring their children never will be exposed to filth. The fact is, though, this time and effort could be better spent simply instilling some concrete morals into children, not flimsy values such as "violence is bad," and "don't have sex."
Whether or not you feel comfortable on New York City streets, passing by sex shop after sex shop, you must acknowledge the right of those shops to exist. This is a non-issue, its resolution is so clear. As long as politicians like mayor Giuliani neglect this right, however, Americans always will be tempted to manipulate the First Amendment to suit whatever cause they support.