“Heritage or Hate?” Joshua Wheeler Talks Confederate Flag & Civil Liberties

To kick off free speech week at Piedmont Virginia Community College, Connie Jorgensen, assistant professor of political science, booked Joshua Wheeler to give his speech “Heritage or Hate: Free Speech and the Confederate Flag” in room 229 on Monday, Oct. 19. Wheeler is the executive director of The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression.

According to the center’s website, “The Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression is a unique organization devoted solely to the defense of free expression in all its forms…Since its founding in 1990, the Center has fulfilled its mission through a wide range of programs in education and the arts, and active participation in judicial and legislative matters involving free expression.”

Jorgensen said, “I invited Mr. Wheeler to speak because of the important work they do at The Thomas Jefferson Center. Free speech is the most important civil liberty we have and I think it’s important that students are exposed to discussions about the issue.”

He explained what the first amendment meant and how it related to the Confederate Flag and the controversy over the connotation of the flag. He argued that the flag was both a sign of heritage and hate. However, the government does not have a right to tell the people they cannot fly the flag because it is a right granted to the people through the first amendment–even though some people find the flag offensive and racist. “There’s a difference in saying you ought not say something and saying you can’t say it,” Wheeler said. The speech lasted 45 minutes, with 15 minutes for questions from the audience at the end.