Freedom of Speech and Censorship

This Library Research Guide is intended to support study and research in the UW Political Science course POL-3216-001: Special Topics in Political Theory: Freedom of Speech, Fall 2021. However, it should also be of general interest. 

This guide directs users to resources on the related but distinct concepts of freedom of expression/speech, intellectual freedom and academic freedom. The resources provided here will assist students in navigating the long-standing tension in free speech debates between the values of open inquiry and discourse in democracies, and the need to protect the interests and dignity of people or identifiable groups who might be target of hateful or discriminatory speech. The guide also acknowledges that -- owing to differing constitutional and legal contexts -- debates around these issues vary in character between the Canadian and American contexts, and that they take place in a variety of venues including but not limited to politics, university campuses, libraries and online.