Standing With the KKK

Trey Smith

I loathe the KKK. I think what they advocate is downright despicable. And yet, despite the fact that I abhor the group, I stand with them when it comes to the right of the freedom of speech. As Reuters recently reported,

A Ku Klux Klan chapter sued the state of Georgia on Thursday for rejecting the white supremacist group's application to "adopt" a stretch of highway.

The KKK chapter, represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, said Georgia's refusal to let it join an adopt-a-highway program, which typically involves volunteers picking up trash and planting trees along roads, violated its free speech rights.

The state's reasons for denying the application were "frivolous and pretextual" and were designed to "shift their duty to uphold free speech to a court instead," the lawsuit filed in Georgia state court said.

"We decided to take this case because it is such a clear violation of the speech rights of the group," said Debbie Seagraves, executive director of the ACLU of Georgia. "We can't let that slide."

Georgia officials cited public safety concerns when they denied the group's application to join the program in June.

This is the part of the concept of free speech that a lot of people don't get. It is just not the idea of standing up for the rights of people you agree with because -- for speech truly to be free -- you must support the same right for those you vehemently disagree with.

Throughout my years, I have found that liberals and progressives are some of the worst at grasping this notion. They will throw out all the stops to protest when a like-minded or congruent group is discriminated against, but will sit on the sidelines and say nary a peep when the group, in question, is one they oppose. In this regard, they end up being no better than the conservatives!!

Either you believe in the right of free speech or you don't.