Right To Free Hate Speech: A Dworkinian Analysis

Swasti Patoria, B.A. LL.B. (Hons), Jindal Global Law School, Sonipat

ABSTRACT

The constitutions of all the so-called liberal democracies around the world place some restrictions on the free speech of the citizens. Even the right of free speech constitutionally protected through the First Amendment in USA has its own exceptions1. The point of debate is what is the line at which any hateful or vituperative speech loses its protection under right to freedom of expression. We shall see this is in context of racial discriminatory speech. The context, however, is just for better conceptualisation and the author has refrained from attaching real incidents. Through the jurisprudential analysis given, we will try to answer the question of when, if at all, and to what extent is the restriction on freedom of expression is justified in fighting against racism. The paper takes up the views on unrestricted freedom of expression as a necessary element of democracy offered by Ronald Dworkin as the base theory for the problem.