It is sad to see a letter from someone who wants to have law enforcement officers fired for free speech, engaged in when they are not acting in official capacity (“Hate-filled letters by law enforcement alarming,” Aug. 14, TribLive). All Americans are entitled to form and express opinions without fear of retribution … or at least they should be. Social media is the new public square. Police officers are entitled to speak their minds, on their own time, and we don’t have to agree with their viewpoints. We don’t have the right to threaten them into silence with loss of their jobs.
I would ask a person: If you are comfortable silencing law enforcement officers’ right to free speech, does that mean I can silence anyone I don’t agree with as well? Does that extend to public officials only or private citizens too? Where does it end?
Totalitarian societies thrive when silence is enforced through threats. Threatening people into silence is cowardly and a sure sign that your position is so weak that you can’t tolerate any opposition to your views.
Freedom of speech is the right of all Americans, not only those people we allow to.
Wayne Ludwin
Ross