Essay contest 2006

Thank you to everyone who submitted essays for the First Amendment Week essay contest. The judges for the essay contest were

• Clay Calvert, co-director, Pennsylvania Center for the First Amendment
• Douglass Daniel, Associated Press Washington bureau
• Rick Davis, artistic director, Theater of the First Amendment
• J. Michael Farrell, director, First Amendment Center at University of Kentucky
• Charles C. Haynes, senior scholar, First Amendment Center
• W. Wat Hopkins, professor, Virginia Tech
• Carol S. Lomicky, professor, University of Nebraska at Kearney
• Greg Lukianoff, president, Foundation for Individual Rights in Education
• Sue Montalvo, director, Illinois First Amendment Center
• Roy Moore, associated vice president for academic affairs, Georgia College & State University

The winning essay, written by senior business information technology major Scott Bliss, follows. You can also listen to Scott read his award-winning essay on WUVT 90.7 FM by clicking here.

By Scott Bliss

If I never left the one-stoplight, upstate New York town where I grew up, I would probably see my parents a lot more than I do now.  I probably would have started a little computer repair business, or taken a job with the county, like my dad.  My kids would be fifth-generation graduates of my high school, and I can’t even begin to explain how much gas money I would save come the holidays.  I’ll always remember the day that I told my parents that I was going to school in Virginia to find something different. As I will never forget where I came from, I will never forget where I came, and the life I chose for myself when I arrived.

From a large school comes education more valuable than traditional classroom instruction.  My freshman year brought me my first political argument.  It brought friendships with my Muslim hallmates and my first taste of Indian food.  It is when I wrote my first letter to the school newspaper and when I smiled, waving to an airplane taking a picture of me and hundreds of my peers standing in protest on the drill field.

The First Amendment of the Constitution permitted my Muslim friends to travel to this country without fear of religious persecution; it allowed me to pronounce my ideas to the public without fear of censorship; it allowed me to smile when I waved to that plane, rather than look over my shoulder, fearing violent State retaliation.  But have these events had a truly significant impact on my livelihood?  I’m not sure.  So what does the First Amendment really mean to me?  What should it mean to me?

Every day when I watch the news or read a newspaper, I am overwhelmed by stories about terrible events in other parts of the world.  I hear countless tales of Middle Eastern car bombers and suicide bombers and guns and rockets and genocide and…the list goes on.  At first glance, on many occasions, I have thought to myself that only a wild animal could have performed these violent acts!  I felt that this abominable disregard for human life is in itself sub-human.  However in retrospect, I know that without the virtually instinctual human rights that Americans are so fortunate to have and sometimes take for granted, a person can be driven to do anything to grasp those rights, like a man drowning, thrashing, desperate for air.

So how has the First Amendment affected my life?  The little things like protests on the drill field and a different group of friends are easy to spot.  But the larger, yet latent effects of the Amendment are a bit harder to find.  The free flow of ideas and intelligence and constructive criticism in this country not only contribute to its continuous improvement, but they also maintain a general state of peace within our borders.  Disputes are generally resolved through litigation and compromise.  Laws are passed to please the majority and generally do the right thing.  And if our system somehow fails, our citizens may revolt in peaceful protest – not with rockets and bombs.

The First Amendment not only protects Americans, but it improves our quality of life.  The freedom of the press enables multiple media organizations to compete for our business.  Like competition in the business world, the media is generally kept honest by their consumers’ demand for accurate information.  Conversely, the media keeps honest the businesses and politicians on which they report.  The free, private press, informs Americans of relevant events, good or bad, thereby encouraging ethical behavior, uncovering corruption, and enabling citizens to make informed decisions.

Though I have never personally petitioned the government to redress any of my grievances, I am thankful to have this right.  It is my right to redress the government that, like the free press, keeps legislators honest and ensures their commitment to my wellbeing.  Some of my American predecessors have utilized this aspect of the First Amendment to reform the nation and improve the lives of its citizens.  Civil rights leaders such as Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. have proven themselves as leaders to us all, having redefined a culture.  Hopefully our nation will continue to produce leaders with the ability to influence legislators to make the right decisions regarding controversial issues, such as gay marriage, illegal immigration, and foreign wars.

Like our citizens depend on their nation, our nation depends on its citizens.  The very essence of the American culture depends on the articulation of our diverse ideas and personal ethics.  By encouraging, rather than inhibiting Americans to provide the essential intangible resources it needs to operate, our nation has secured stability, strength, and prosperity.  Though politics, race, and cultural differences may sometimes divide us as a people, let us never forget the words of the French philosopher Voltaire: “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” 

Come the holidays, on my nine-hour drive to upstate New York, my ears are flooded with a collage of radio voices.  Each religious, traffic, top-40, country, political commentary, and oldies station eventually fades when I descend from whichever mountain separates the transmitter and me.  I press the seek button and thankfully don’t have to wait too long until another voice is tuned in, waiting to share its message with me.