Freedom of Speech Manifesto

Article 11 of the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen — 1789

« The free communication of thoughts and opinions is one of the most precious rights of man: every citizen may therefore speak, write, and print freely, but shall be answerable for any abuses of this freedom in the cases determined by law. »

Freedom of speech is not one liberty among others. It is the condition of all the others. Without it, freedom of conscience remains silent, freedom of association remains empty, and political freedom remains captive.

The French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen of 1789 does not grant a mere tolerance: it recognizes a fundamental right. It does not confer a privilege: it establishes a presumption of liberty. The burden of any restriction lies with the law, and with the law alone, subject to judicial review and not to administrative discretion.

Freedom of speech is not a slogan. It has always protected the weak against the strong, the minority against the majority, and the citizen against the state. It is a restraint on all powers.