FREEDOM OF SPEECH IS OUR RIGHT, BUT SHOULD NOT BE MISUSED

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Freedom of speech is basically having the liberty to express oneself without the fear of being reprimanded or oppressed by another person or body. Every individual has access to this right because it is very important that we are able to use our voices and stand with our opinions without being limited in any way. However, this is tricky because it comes at a cost. The cost of being responsible for the things that you say and the words you put in writing.

It is not a complex concept, it's just that having freedom of speech shouldn't be an excuse to be careless with words. Even when speaking to people generally, there should be a level of maturity in the way a person table words down. Having the right to freedom of speech isn't an avenue to disrespect other people or bring them down with it, just because you feel you are free to do so. That's where the line is being drawn because you can actually get punished for misusing that freedom.

Are all opinions respectable?

My answer to this question is 'NO', because the fact that everyone is free to share their opinions doesn't every one of it will be considered as useful or helpful. People view things differently and we cannot control that. If you have a group of 10 people and you ask for their opinion on a particular matter, it will definitely vary from one person to the other. While some opinions will be highly useful and sensible, some might not, and that also depends on how the judges choose to measure it.

Should everyone be free to express themselves in all situations?

Everyone should actually be able to express themselves no matter the situation on ground, it's our basic human right. I thought of a scenario while writing this post and this is it: Let's say we all have the opportunity to speak to the president of our country at a partcular point in time, how many people will come forward to express themselves and ask questions without any fear? The truth is that many people might be very scared because they know how much power the president has in the country when normally, they ought to realize it is their right to say their mind but like I said earlier, there has to be a level of maturity employed. So, no matter how serious a situation is and it is something that concerns them, they should actually be free to express themselves.

How is freedom of speech being compromised in social media?

This is another serious topic that ought to be looked into because so many people are misusing their freedom of speech on the internet because they feel they are untouchable there. There are a lot of keypad warriors online nowadays ready to bully, direspect and bring people down on the internet all in the name of freedom of speech. A very troubling case surfaced on the internet a few weeks ago in Nigeria where this gospel artist posted the picture of her new born baby and some people started commenting that the baby looks like another gospel artist who is her colleague and not her husband. Let's even agree that it's an observation, but a particular guy had the effrontery to make a video to call out her family and publicly said the husband should go and run a DNA test, that the child is not his. He said all these without any evidence or being close in any way to the family.

Eventually, he was sued by the family and to be honest, he really deserved it. The way people talk anyhow on social media baffles me so much, it's like they think they are untouchable and that just means they are clowns. It is not that we should be scared of sharing our opinions on matters online, but at least, it should be done in a respectable manner. Sadly, so many people lack that in the social media space nowadays.

Thanks for reading❤️

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_{This post was inspired by the #inleo community and my entry to the #mayinleo monthly topic Day 3. Please checkthe announcement post to partake in this.}

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_{Thumbnail was made using canva}