5 William O. Douglas Quotes on Speech

William O. Douglas quotes on speech

10. Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us.

22. The struggle is always between the individual and his sacred right to express himself and the power structure that seeks conformity, suppression, and obedience.

24. One who comes to the Court must come to adore, not to protest. That's the new gloss on the First Amendment.

25. A function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute. It may indeed best serve its high purposes when it induces a condition of unrest, creates dissatisfaction with conditions as they are, or even stirs people to anger. Speech is often provocative and challenging. It may strike at prejudices and preconceptions and have profound unsettling effects as it presses for acceptance of an idea.

31. It is our attitude toward free thought and free expression that will determine our fate. There must be no limit on the range of temperate discussion, no limits on thought. No subject must be taboo. No censor must preside at our assemblies.