I hate racism with every fiber of my being. After all, I have a daughter-in-law who is Nigerian, another daughter-in-law who is Puerto Rican, and a son-in-law who is also Puerto Rican. That means that all six of our precious grandchildren are racially and ethnically mixed.
I have also spent more than 35 years ministering to hundreds of thousands of mostly minority inmates in prisons across North America and Africa, and to mostly minority at-risk youth here at home. And yes, I have co-sponsored numerous racial harmony events in the county where I live because I believe in racial equality to my very core.
To me, racism is a cancer on the human soul, and it has no place in the United States of America. Neither, for that matter, does censorship.
Last week, NASCAR driver Noah Gragson was indefinitely suspended by the Legacy Motor Club for his “actions” on social media. Specifically, Gragson is accused of violating the Member Conduct section of the 2023 NASCAR Rule Book.
Digging deeper, it appears that Gragson “liked” an Instagram meme that mocked George Floyd. I haven’t seen the meme, which I suppose was taken down immediately, but I can only imagine its vile content.
That being said, have we reached the point in America where our skin is so thin, and our feelings are so easily hurt that we willingly and arbitrarily suppress free speech? In no way am I defending the meme or Gragson’s “liking” it. However, I am defending his constitutional right to publicly state his views, no matter how repulsive and repugnant they may be.
Our constitutional republic was founded on the principle of a free exchange of ideas. Do you not think that the Tories who supported King George III were offended by the revolutionary writings of Thomas Paine, Samuel Adams, and Patrick Henry? During the Civil War, Abraham Lincoln was periodically portrayed in newspaper cartoons as a lunatic, a heartless warmonger, and even an ape. I am sure that – as much as he detested those depictions – the “Great Emancipator” would have supported the editors’ right to do so.
My friend, the First Amendment applies not only to speech that we approve of and positions with which we agree. It also applies to those points of view that we find abhorrent and reprehensible.
