"Offensive Ideas" - Campaign for Free Expression PSA #1

Video by Adam Isaak.

Center for Inquiry's Campaign for Free Expression Video Contest has begun! The right to freely express oneself is vital in a modern society; we would like you to tell the world why.

Participation is easy: create a short video public service announcement about the importance of free expression, upload the video to YouTube, and tag the video with "Campaign for Free Expression Video Contest". On International Blasphemy Rights Day, September 30th, 2010, we will announce the top three winners, with a grand prize of $2000! See the full instructions and rules before creating your entry.

Center for Inquiry: http://www.centerforinquiry.net/
Campaign for Free Expression: http://www.centerforinquiry.net/campaign_for_free_expression
Contest rules: http://www.centerforinquiry.net/campaign_for_free_expression/contest_rules

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About the Campaign for Free Expression:
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Some governments and institutions—and even some individuals—want to keep certain topics off limits. This is especially true with religion. In many places, discussions and questions about religion are discouraged, even punished. But how can we come to our own conclusions about religion if we can't freely examine and discuss it?

The Campaign for Free Expression is a CFI initiative to focus efforts and attention on one of the most crucial components of freethought: the right of individuals to express their viewpoints, opinions, and beliefs about all subjects—especially religion.

Various United Nations bodies, including the UN's Human Rights Council, have recently adopted resolutions condemning so-called "defamation" of religion. These resolutions lend credibility to efforts to suppress dissent and criticism, especially in Islamic countries, but Western European countries are also debating, or have already instated, laws that would criminalize religiously offensive statements. For example, Ireland recently enacted a new blasphemy law that prohibits publication of material "insulting in relation to matters held sacred by any religion."

CFI believes we must increase public awareness of these threats to freedom of expression, discuss and develop plans to prevent curtailment of free expression, and demonstrate that people care about their rights to free expression and are eager to exercise them.

To support the Center for Inquiry and its efforts to promote science, reason, and freedom of inquiry, please donate at https://secure3.convio.net/cfi/site/Donation2?1461.donation=form1&df_id=1...

Category:

Education

Tags:

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• Free
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• Contest

[warpz0ne]

@zvezdafutbola You are partially correct. The purpose of this video, and of the Campaign, is not freedom of ideas which enhance progress, but freedom of ideas, whether considered positive, uplifting, offensive, or blasphemous, which will -inherently- lead to progress as the ideas are judged on their merits, and in public discourse, rather than suppressed due to the offense of certain groups.

[bumsausage]

Islam is for irrational uneducated under achievers.

[Gidwan]

And though all the winds of doctrine were let loose to play upon the earth, so Truth be in the field, we do injuriously by licensing and prohibiting to misdoubt her strength. Let her and Falsehood grapple; who ever knew Truth put to the worse in a free and open encounter? (Milton, Areopagitica)

[Chelsea4lyfe8]

Put this shit on the fucking telly

[mike4ty4]

The real problem is when you say something deliberately intended to offend/harm someone. THEN you have done an EVIL.

[treehugger625]

Unfortunately the church doesn't want us to change the world; they don't want progress. such a shame that they'd rather grasp at what's not there rather than use science to try to improve the world we live in.

[SirFakeName]

Is "ironic" the right word to describe the first one?

[spartinpastic]

it simply means hat people have the right to speak freely no mater how offensive

[McSibiss]

Great message!

Video Copilot for the win! ;)

[huyked]

Chop off the hands of the two (thumbs down) that didn't support freedom of speech.