APFIVE According to the excerpt from Justice Holmes, what was the Court’s rationale for upholding restrictions on free speech during wartime?
During this tumultuous time of conflict, I have pondered the balance between liberty and security. The cherished right of free speech must be upheld, but it is not inviolable in circumstances of grave national danger. In the cases before us, words have the potential to incite disobedience and hinder our heroic war efforts. It is the solemn duty of the Court to recognize that some expressions, though free in conception, can be perverted into threats to public order. I am resolute in asserting that when speech crosses the threshold into inciting immediate harm, it loses the protection ordinarily granted by the Constitution. Thus, in our judgment, the actions motivated by such dangerous speech must be restrained to avert further turmoil.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr., ‘Schenck v. United States Opinion’, 1919.
Because all criticisms of the government should be suppressed during wartime to maintain unity.
Because speech that poses a clear and present danger to national security can justifiably be limited.
Because free speech is an outdated concept that no longer applies in modern warfare.
Because the government has absolute power to censor any form of dissent without justification.
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