2. Focus on Texts

2.1. Do the following before you read the piece.

1. Make a list of issues this article is most likely to address.

2. Make a list of the questions you would like answered after you’ve read the text.

3. Skim the text looking only for the answers to your questions.

4. Now read the text more attentively and complete the exercises that follow.

Freedom and rights

Freedom of the individual is considered one of the essential features of western civilisation, which is itself sometimes called the Free World. This freedom is often expressed in terms of rights to do certain things or to be treated in a particular way. When a person does something that others think strange, British and American people will often say, “it’s a free country”, meaning that although they disagree with the choice they recognise the other person’s right to make it.

Americans sometimes call the US the ‘land of the free’, a phrase from its national anthem. British people have always strongly defended their freedom and do not like being told what to do. The fear that they will lose the freedom to decide their own future is behind many people’s lack of enthusiasm for European unity.

Constitutional rights

Many of the rights of the US citizens are laid down in the Constitution and the first ten amendments to it, which are together called the Bill of Rights. The constitution was written in the late 1700s to explain not only how the US government would work, but also what limits there would be on its power. At that time, people were beginning to believe that the rights of individuals were important, and that the government was the main threat to those rights. Limiting the federal government’s power was also seen as necessary to protect the rights of states within the United States.

Britain does not have a written constitution or legal document describing the rights of individuals. Some legal experts believe that a bill of rights should be introduced. Without it, they argue, the rights of the individual will gradually be eroded. To many British people, freedom to live without interference by the government is extremely important. Most take this freedom for granted and only realise how fortunate they are when they see people elsewhere being oppressed.

Personal freedoms

In Britain and the US the most basic rights include freedom of expression, freedom of choice and freedom of worship.

Freedom of expression does not imply complete freedom for people to say what they like. In the US the First Amendment protects freedom of speech and of the press but the courts, especially the Supreme Court, decide how it should be applied. For instance, a newspaper is not allowed to print something bad about a person that is known not to be true: this is libel. The courts do not practise prior restraint, i.e. they cannot stop a newspaper from printing something, but they can punish the newspaper afterwards. However, in a few cases, e.g. when national security is involved, the courts may order newspapers not to print a report.

The right to free speech in the US has not always been respected. In the 1950s, when McCarthyism was at its height, people who were suspected of being Communists were called before Congress to answer questions. People who used their right to free speech and said they believed in Communism, or took the Fifth, i.e. used their right under the Fifth Amendment not to give evidence against themselves, often lost their jobs or went to prison.

The Supreme Court has ruled that certain actions are symbolic speech. During the Vietnam War some people burned the American flag to indicate their disagreement with the war. This was seen as symbolic speech and many Americans thought it should be limited.

Censorship of the press was ended in Britain in the 1960s, and newspapers and television companies are expected to behave responsibly. In 1988 the publication of Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses, which was considered insulting by followers of Islam, led to a fierce debate about freedom of artistic expression. Some people thought the author had been foolish to write things which he knew would cause offence, but many strongly defended his right to free expression.