Let Ideas Flow

As my partner Alex and I discussed, the marketplace of ideas is the most important value of free expression. When Milton first put forth the idea that "when truth and falsehood are allowed to freely grapple, truth will win," I can imagine that this challenged the standing norm at the time because it opened people's eyes to seeing the other side of the story, even if they don't agree with it.

When I think about this concept, I often think about my favorite TedTalk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie called "The Danger of a Single Story." In this talk, Adichie discusses the "danger" of what happens when we only hear one side of the story, or only hear one story. While she is discussing this danger in terms of single stories and cultural misunderstandings, it is highly applicable to all realms of conversations and can absolutely pertain to the discovery of truth under free expression. For example, while the Israeli-Palistinian conflict is a hot-button topic in politics today, a lot of people worldwide are apathetic to the issue and don't care to look any deeper into both sides of the ongoing story. This phenomenon is "dangerous", though, because the news media highlights each side in different ways which can subconsciously affect a person's attitudes on this issue, especially if they aren't actively looking to separate the truth and the falsehoods. If people were to grapple with these truths and falsehoods, the truth would come out stronger.

Although the marketplace of ideas is the most vital from this list, similar effects can be found from the promotion of tolerance and the protection of dissent. Adichie wants her audience to listen to all stories, not just one, before jumping to conclusions or making a decision on what it means to be a part of a culture. With this, she is promoting tolerance of other aspects of life, even when an individual may be upset by an aspect of a culture that is different from their own. This parallels the reasoning behind why the First Amendment protects hate speech; society can only grow when there are constant  challenges. Furthermore, when our system protects the voices of the outspoken minority, there are more ideas circulating around that may challenge existing norms. These challenges should not be feared. These challenges should be welcomed. The only way to advance and to foster the growth of a nation or a state is to put all of the ideas on an evening playing field.

The German government does a fantastic job of maintaining an open marketplace of ideas and the protection of minority voices. While it is common to joke that the German government's present-day actions are based on their horrendous past experiences with Hitler, it is true - Hitler is the reason that the German government is set up in such a way that no majority power can rule, and that minority voices will always be heard because the parties are forced to form coalitions in the Bundesrat and Bundestag in order to get things done on behalf of the German people.

Lynds