People move the government through their voice. They use freedom of speech to make the government take actions on certain issues. Without freedom of speech, our nation wouldn’t be a democracy. Every person has a voice to use when the situation arises. In countries that have a dictatorship form of government like North Korea, people are not allowed to express their opinions at all. Fortunately, in America, we have the freedom to express ourselves. If journalists disagree with any government policy, they write articles criticizing the policy and the government itself; if writers see problems in our society, they write novels and stories addressing these problems; and if civilians are discontent with the government, they can speak freely about their discontentment.

To me, freedom of speech means being able to express my opinions and beliefs without the interference of anyone or anything. To me, it means much more than the simple Dictionary definition: “the right to express any opinions without censorship or restraint.” Freedom of speech evokes something much deeper, it evokes the heart and the soul. As humans, we experience different emotions, and freedom of speech allows us to express these emotions. Of course, freedom of speech has its restraints, as do many other things. This simply means we have to use it responsibly and not harm others verbally or physically. To not use it wisely would be a waste of a precious gift that we are endowed with.

Freedom of speech means a plethora of things to me. It means I am able to use my gift of writing to express my feelings. It means that when I am infuriated with President Trump for harshly criticizing immigrants, I am able to speak out against him on social media. It means that when I am enraged with Congress for not taking any actions to prevent yet another shooting, I am able to write articles on a teen magazine. But overall, freedom of speech means that I am able to use my own voice to create a lasting impact on the world.