It’s hard to imagine these days that
there could be anyone who hasn’t at one time or another referred to their “constitutional
right to free speech.” While this common
phrase may roll off the tongue of so many people, few truly understanding where
their rights come from; it is a misunderstanding that undermines many of our
most fundamental policy debates.
The fact is the U.S. Constitution protects our God-given rights. The government does not grant those rights to us
as citizens. This is perhaps the most
widely misunderstood aspect of our system of government.
The idea that the power of government
is derived from the consent of the governed was first articulated by John Locke
in his 1690 Second Treatise of Government,
when he wrote, “Men being, as has been said, by nature, all free, equal, and
independent, no one can be put out of this estate and subjected to the
political power of another, without his own consent.” Locke’s words are the underlying basis of the 1st
Amendment in the Bill of Rights,
which reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of
religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and
to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”
Many people refer to their right to
free speech as though it is the 1st Amendment that grants them the right to say
what they like. That is looking at it
the wrong way. Were the Constitution the granter of the right to
free speech, religion, assembly and so forth, the 1st Amendment would not start
out, “Congress shall make no law.” That
part of the sentence clearly states that the government has no rightful
authority over those things and is blocked from infringing upon them. Government is not granting you the right to
free speech. That right already exists. Government is expressly forbidden from
attempting to infringe on it.
The Declaration of Independence asserts that all men are endowed by
their Creator with certain unalienable rights. In other words, our rights to Life, Liberty,
and the Pursuit of Happiness are God given, not government given. But if you believe that we are granted our
fundamental rights by the government, then you are more likely to seek
additional favors from the government. If
the government bestows all good things, what is to stop someone from thinking
up more good things that could and should be conferred by our elected leaders?
Any fair-minded reading of the Constitution reveals that it does not
grant us the wonderful rights we embrace. It prohibits the government from infringing
upon them. Or at least it used to be
that way.
Our Founding Fathers did not see
government as a benevolent ‘Santa Claus’ who guarantees an ever-expanding wish
list of rights. Rather, they viewed
government as a necessary evil – far preferable to anarchy – but nonetheless a
serious threat to liberty. Liberty was
the ultimate goal of our founders, and for its sake, they were willing to pledge
their sacred honor and lay down their lives. In the famous words of Patrick Henry, “Is life
so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and
slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as
for me, give me liberty or give me death!”
That spirit of liberty continues to
inspire oppressed people around the world. It should inspire all of us fortunate enough
to live here every day. And it certainly
should deter us from thinking that our rights come from anyone other than God.
Rev.
Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.
Chaplain
(Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army
Pastor,
Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel
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