A Pizza Story: Promotion of Tolerance (8 Values of Free Expression)

 Among the 8 Values of Free Expression, the one that resonates with me the most is Promoting Tolerance. We live in a very divided country with millions and millions of different people with different experiences. All of these different people have different outlooks on life, because of those experiences that they've had. As human beings, we are all aware of the fact that everyone is different from us, and obviously, nobody has had the exact same experiences that we have had. So why is it that we act so surprised when people have different lifestyles, beliefs, values, and opinions than ourselves? 

For example, You go to a pizza place. The person in front of you orders sausage on their pizza. Let's say you happen to hate sausage. Or, let's even say you have never tried it, but it doesn't seem like it would be your thing. Chances are, you aren't going to hate the person in front of you solely because they ordered sausage on their pizza. You have never even talked to this person, and you don't know anything about them. Therefore, this simple lifestyle decision is not going to affect your view on them as a person. Why is that? That is because them getting sausage on their pizza does not affect your life in any way. It makes them happy and they enjoy it. You enjoy pepperoni on your pizza, and that does not affect their life. You don't judge the person in front of you for their decision because you instinctively are aware that they enjoy sausage, just like you enjoy pepperoni. Nobody is saying you have to like sausage too, nobody is saying you have to "give it a try" or praise them for ordering sausage, we just TOLERATE the fact that people like different pizza toppings.

I have never understood why that concept goes away when dealing with things like religion, sexuality, or culture. Someone practicing a different religion than you, similar to a pizza topping, does not affect you or your life, so why can't we allow people to practice the religion that makes them feel happy and fulfilled? Many people may say, "well it isn't as simple as pizza." But...it is. It definitely can be. All it takes is tolerance. 

It is because of the hate that I see toward different groups of people that I have come to this conclusion, thus supporting the claim that the protection of hate speech actually improves society. However, it is also my belief that we have seen enough of it, and it is now our job as a society to collectively decide to be more tolerant. 

I believe that Promoting Tolerance is the core of Free Expression. People in this world cannot feel comfortable enough to “freely express” anything if they do not feel tolerated. For example, another value of Free Expression is individual-self fulfillment. If a gay person does not feel “tolerated” in their town, on social media, or within their family, that individual self-fulfillment cannot be achieved. The same concept applies to religion. Religion can be a huge part of a person’s identity or daily life. If a person does not feel that they can express that part of themselves, they cannot feel complete in their identity, or worse, they could feel ashamed of it. 

Our right to express our differences is protected under the first amendment. If we as a society could do that in a more respectful way, the world would be a much better place.