In the years before the Civil War, slaveholders were the greatest threat to free speech in the United States. Southern whites used state laws, Congressional gag rules, postal suppression, and physical violence to silence abolitionist speech because they believed it to be dangerous.
For example, in 1830, the state of Louisiana declared that not only “any public speech in bars, benches, stages, pulpits, or any other place,” but also “private discourse or conversation,” He punished those who used the word. “Tends to create discontent among the free colored people of this state, or to incite disobedience among the slaves within the country.'' In other words, those who speak out against slavery or racial discrimination are This would be a violation of this law. The penalties imposed ranged from three to 21 years of hard labor to the death penalty.
If the Democratic Party refuses to allow antislavery Americans to make their voices heard, there will be no recourse but violence.
Other states have enacted similar laws. As one South Carolina newspaper declared, the topic of slavery was “off the table.”
It took courage to speak out against slavery in the United States. When anti-speech laws weren't enough, the mob filled the gap. Some abolitionists were brutally assaulted, and others were murdered.
Abraham Lincoln addressed this issue in a February 1860 speech at Cooper Union in New York City. He spoke directly to white Southerners and said: Yet, when you talk about us Republicans, you do so only to denounce us as reptiles or, at best, less than outlaws. ” Lincoln noted that Southern Democrats were more likely than Republicans to “give a hearing to pirates and murderers.”
Indeed, when Southern whites gathered together, Lincoln said that their “unconditional condemnation” of the Republican Party was “the first thing to be noticed.” In fact, it was “an essential prerequisite, a license, so to speak, to be admitted or permitted to speak among you.”
Lincoln then asked, “Now, can you stop and consider whether this is justice at all for us or for yourselves, or is it not?”
By asking this question, Lincoln was urging his Democratic opponents to consider the consequences of restricting free speech. Only through the free exchange of ideas can the best ideas take hold. As Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. argued decades later, “the ultimate good desired is better achieved through the free exchange of ideas.” He continued: “The best test of truth is the power of thought to accept itself in competitive markets.”
When slave-owning Democrats and their Northern allies sought to simply silence the words and ideas they opposed; I believed They were false or dangerous, they were denying both political opponents and themselves Opportunity to reach new and better conclusions.
Slaveholders believed that open discussion of slavery would lead to vile riots. They thought that if they could silence the Republicans, they could eliminate the danger.
However, Lincoln objected. “There was judgment and sentiment against slavery in this country, and at least 1.5 million votes were cast,” he said. “You cannot destroy that emotion by dismantling its judgments and emotions, the political organizations that rally around that emotion.'' But if that could be done, he asked: “How much good can we gain by pushing the emotion that created it from the peaceful channel of the ballot box into another channel?” What might that other channel be? With this surgery, John Will the number of browns decrease or increase? ”
This was a stark warning to southern whites. They may believe they can win by silencing their political opponents. But oppressive speech does not erase the widespread belief that slavery is evil. And if the Democratic Party refuses to allow anti-slavery Americans to voice their opinions, there will be no recourse but violence.
In a provocative rant, Lincoln spoke directly to Republicans, urging them to hold fast to their beliefs, even if they were vilified or worse. “Let us not be defamed of duty by false accusations against us, let us not be frightened by threats of destruction to our government and dungeons to ourselves,” he said. “Let us have faith that justice produces power. Based on that faith, let us boldly fulfill our duties as we understand them to the end.”
With this last sentence, Lincoln reversed the classic adage, “You might be right.” He wanted his fellow Republicans to believe that their ideas were persuasive and that they could carry a presidential election if they would just stand up and advocate for their positions. In other words, rational argument can create a political majority that pursues justice.
Abraham Lincoln offers a lesson that is as true today as it was in 1860. For American democracy to flourish, we must foster habits of mind among our people that encourage the free exchange of ideas.
Editor's note: This article was originally published by RealClearHistory and made available via RealClearWire.
