The Importance of Expression of Thought

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The importance of expression of thought: Summary of Jonathan Rauch’s “In Defense of Prejudice: Why incendiary speech must be protected” When discussing a topic such as prejudice, the line between what is right and what is wrong becomes quite thin. In Jonathan Rauch’s “In Defense of Prejudice: Why incendiary speech must be protected,” he takes on the difficult task of defining prejudice then addresses the “purist” and “intellectual pluralist” views on the matter. Rauch examines the root of prejudice and determines the need for prejudice, not for the expansion of “hate speech,” but for the enlightenment of political, religious, and educational doctrine and for the preservation of our freedom of expression. Rauch highlights the idea that a simple misguided belief can be easily mistaken for prejudice without proper understanding of the actual meaning. The dictionary defines prejudice as an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason. A controversial belief may not be favorable or even correct, but that does not make it prejudice. Rauch uses the example of a University of Michigan student who openly voiced during a class discussion that he thought homosexuality was treatable through therapy. The boy was summoned to a formal disciplinary hearing for violating the school’s policy against victimizing based on sexual orientation. In this example, Rauch questions whether or not this student’s hypothesis was misguided belief or hate speech. Although the student’s hypothesis was incorrect, for the search of truth, it doesn’t matter. Being allowed to bring up such beliefs allows for the student to become enlightened. The student’s hypothesis taken as an attempt for advancement of knowledge concedes an intellectual pluralism that does not do away with prejudice, but rather examines every aspect in order to attain the highest

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