“Free speech” is both a narrow legal idea and a broader popular idea. Its strict legal meaning is that people should be able to share ideas without retaliation or punishment from their government and that they should not be compelled by the government to express themselves in ways that contradict their beliefs. Most countries around the world recognize free speech as a legal right; however, to some extent, most countries also routinely place limits on citizens’ free speech—sometimes for reasons of public safety and sometimes to protect those in power from criticism. The broader, more popular meaning of “free speech” is the idea that people should be able to express themselves freely to one another without fear of social consequences. Often, people believe in this kind of free speech only to the extent that it protects their own freedom of expression—but some believe that even people they strongly disagree with should not face social sanctions for their ideas, regardless of how repugnant those ideas might be.

Whether free speech should be limited, and, if so, what those limits should be has been the subject of great controversy. Artists and activists of all kinds routinely engage in speech that others find offensive, but most people would not support extreme reactions against this offensive speech.