Letter – Free speech

Dear Editors

I was quite shocked to read the article about Charlie Kirk in the November issue of the Socialist Standard who was murdered on a university campus. The avowed Left is often indifferent about issues around free speech but I was not expecting the same thing to come from the SPGB who have a rich tradition of its defence in both theory and practice. Has the SPGB changed their view on this?

Name and email supplied

Reply:
Rest assured that the Socialist Party’s position on free speech remains unchanged. We defend (and host) open discussion as essential to the working class’s democratic organization. The article did not excuse the violence, but contextualised how groups like Turning Point USA use the cloak of ‘free speech’ to promote reactionary politics and incite hostility; including incidents of harassment and intimidation against students, trade unionists and minorities. Actions by TPUSA (and TPUK) show that their defence of ‘free speech’ is often a cover for silencing opposition and reinforcing existing hierarchies rather than fostering genuine democratic debate. – Editors

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