August 18: Freedom of Speech

This just in: Dr. Laura will not be renewing her contract at the end of the year. This comes just days after her "N-word rant" caused outrage amongst the media. Schlessinger made the announcement while making an appearance on Larry King stating that after doing radio for thirty years, "I want to be able to say what’s on my mind and in my heart and what I think is helpful and useful without somebody getting angry or some special-interest group deciding this is a time to silence a voice of dissent."

I have never been a devout listener of Dr. Laura's, but I've heard a good amount of her program. Although she can be a bit obnoxious with her interruptions (a major pet peeve of mine) I never heard her treat a guest that didn't deserve it with disrespect. She has an abundant amount of imbecile callers that either can't think for themselves or just want to be on national radio and she talks down on most of these listeners for good reason.

When I heard about her so-called "rant," I couldn't imagine it being very dramatic. I didn't know what to expect from the Michael Richards' tirade because I wasn't familiar with him outside of his sitcom persona but I had a general idea of how Schlessinger might respond if provoked enough. Today I listened to the call and just as I had expected, it was blown way out of proportion.

I don't think what she said was wrong at all and she never once directed the expletive toward anyone. She was merely making a point that depending on what context the word is used, it shouldn't carry a negative or demeaning connotation. "Black guys use it all the time. Turn on HBO, listen to a black comic, and all you hear is n*****, n*****, n*****. I don't get it. If anybody without enough melanin says it, it's a horrible thing; but when black people say it, it's affectionate." After the black caller expressed her shock that Schlessinger had just "spewed" the word, Dr. Laura asked her if she had ever seen HBO to which the caller responded with, "It doesn't matter. You're not black." Schlessinger's point exactly.

This country is going down the toilet; and at alarming rates. Whatever happened to freedom of speech? If you don't like what is being said or printed you don't have to be a part of it. End of story. But because of all of these little special-interests groups, people can't say what they want because someone's feelings might get hurt. The Dr. Laura incident is just a small example but it won't be the last. I'm saddened that she is pulling the plug on the third most listened to program in the country, but I am inspired by her reasons. I wish more people had the courage to take a stand against the direction this country is heading.