No Right to Freedom from being Offended

We have a right to certain things.  From the United States Declaration of Independence it is claimed we have the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

What we don't have is the right to not be offended, angered, irritated, or annoyed by things people say or do providing they have not broken a law.  No, offending you is not against the law.  You may wish that it was, but it is not.

People these days seem to think that if you say or do something that they don't agree with that you should be stopped from saying or doing it just so that they can be free from being offended by you.  These people have no idea what the concept of free speech is all about.

The freedom of speech is the freedom to say the things that might offend, aggravate, irritate, annoy or even anger people because they are things that those people do not want to hear or do not agree with.

The freedom of speech is a freedom to not have to say that the emperor's new clothes look so nice.  It is the freedom to say that what everyone is doing is wrong in some way.  It is the freedom to express a different and perhaps highly unpopular viewpoint.

I listen to what people have to say even if or when I don't like or agree with what they are saying.  I might also express a different opinion or point out areas where I believe they are in error, but I listen.  I don't try to shut them up, shout them down, or ask that they be prevented from talking.  After all, what they are saying is what they are thinking and there is probably a reason that they think that way.  It could be a good reason or a bad reason, but nevertheless it is their reason and they might not be alone in that opinion whether they express it or not.

It's much better to know what people think than to have them bury it until it leaks out another way.

Let's face it, some people actually look for ways to be offended and would find something offensive about saying good morning to them.  They might react with, "What do you mean, 'good morning'?  What's good about it?  Are you saying light is better than darkness?  That's prejudiced against those of us who like night time!  That's offensive!!! People everywhere should stop saying that right now or face a lawsuit."

Many years ago at a previous employer we had a big meeting that was presented by the Human Resources department.  This was to be a meeting about diversity in the workplace.  I had no problem with that, but then came the presentation.  Near the beginning they showed a picture from the 60's of a bunch of old white guy engineers in suits and ties working on some project.  They then proceeded to say that this is the way engineering had been and we no longer wanted the company to look this way.  Being an old white guy at the time, this caught my attention.  More so it caught my attention because it was people like those who had built a company which was the second largest employer in our state at the time (somewhere near 18,000 people at the high point). 

Then, during the rest of the presentation, they showed what they wanted the company to look like.  I had no issue with the people that were in the pictures.  They were Hispanic, Indian (India Indian), Native American, Black, Chinese, Japanese, etc.  They were all young (20's and early 30's).  Many were women. Then I realized something.  None of those people were old white guys.  Yes, I mean NONE.  It registered with me.  If I had been the kind to take offense at such a slight I could easily have been offened, but instead I just remembered it.

Then the layoffs started.  Then they got worse.  There were a few new people hired, but the demographic was changing.  Then things got even worse.  Within a few years I was gone along with a lot of other old white guys.  Just a few years later the company went from the second largest employer in the state to not being an employer of anyone in the state. They had succeeded in changing their demographics alright!

In the process of giving us a presentation which was unwittingly offensive, they told the truth about some decisions they were about to make which ultimately led to the elimination of their own jobs.  How ironic.  The handwriting was on the wall the day that presentation happened.  Ultimately I was glad they inadvertently offended me, because as a result I was prepared for the eventual outcome when it happened.