At Dalton event, Matthew Hipps calls Constitution a document of civility

photo Dalton professor Matthew Hipps talks about freedom of speech and the need for civility during a Constitution Day program at Dalton State College Friday evening.

DALTON, Ga. -- The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution provides for freedom of speech, but the concept behind that idea is even more important, a Dalton professor told his audience Friday evening.

"We all talk about what the Constitution allows, but the concept behind is about just being decent, about being civil," Matthew Hipps said.

Hipps, an assistant professor of political science at Dalton State College, spoke about "When Freedom of Speech Becomes the Freedom to Hate," but focused on the need for civility and tolerance in a democratic county as a way to counter hate speech.

The event was part of the college's annual Constitution Day program, celebrating the signing of the Constitution on Sept. 17, 1787.

Hipps outlined the history of freedom of speech in the United States. He focused on some of the more recent cases such as the Westboro Baptist Church which won a Supreme Court ruling allowing its members to protest at soldiers' funerals.

He also showed a clip from New Black Panther Party advocating violence against white people.

"It's unnerving to watch something like this happen; this is just beyond the bounds of human decency," he said about some of the videos he showed. "It makes you sick to your stomach. But if you're going to protect freedom of speech, you have to be willing to protect their right to say things you don't like."

Hipps interspersed his one-hour presentation with humor and personal experiences, joking that "I don't think me and the Klan will be going out for a drink anytime soon."

He also acknowledged that freedom of speech has gray areas that can be difficult to define. While freedom of speech is protected under the First Amendment, inciting someone to violence crosses the line.

"What do you do when freedom of speech pushes you to a place you're not okay with?" he asked more than a 100 students, faculty and local residents attending the event.

That is when civility and decency should become the guideline, Hipps said.

"Freedom isn't free and it's not simple," he said.

The program ended with a lengthy discussion and questions from the audience.

Jahala Hawkins, a college student who attended the event and asked several questions during the discussion, said the program was thought-provoking.

"Especially the idea of civility," she said. "That's what we need in our society. I'm a die-hard liberal, but a lot of my friends are die-hard conservatives. But we still discuss things and often we agree more than we disagree."

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