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Young Americans are cooling on free speech, with support for controversial or offensive expression plummeting, according to The Conversation. Once champions of unfettered speech, the younger generation's growing caution is now reshaping a cornerstone of democracy, raising alarms about the future of open debate.
With adolescents and those coming of age traditionally the loudest voices for radical cultural expression, Gen Z are now leading the charge to rein it in.
A new report from The Future of Free Speech, a nonpartisan think tank, finds that support for controversial speech among 18- to 34-year-olds has plunged over the last several years, marking a sharp cultural shift from the free speech crusades of the 1960s to today’s more cautious and conditional views.
The numbers paint a stark picture. Back in 2021, 71% of young Americans said it should be legal to insult the U.S. flag, considered a litmus test for protecting unpopular speech. By 2024, that figure dropped to just 43%. Support for speech that offends religious beliefs also dropped, from 71% to 57%. And tolerance for pro-LGBTQ speech? Down 20 points.
This generational rethinking helped push the U.S. into the top three nations with the steepest declines in free speech support out of 33 countries surveyed, behind only Japan and Israel.
What’s behind the drop? A mix of cultural, political, and ideological shifts. Gen Z, born between 1995 and 2004, appears to be breaking from previous generations, including the millennial activists who dominated the digital public square in the 2000s and 2010s.
Unlike their Baby Boomer or Gen X predecessors, who often championed free expression as a shield against government overreach or moral panic, Gen Z is more likely to prioritize harm reduction over absolutism, especially when it comes to protecting what they believe are marginalized groups.
A 2024 survey by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) found that 70% of U.S. college students supported disinviting campus speakers viewed as bigoted. Over a quarter even said violence could be acceptable to stop certain forms of offensive speech.
Still, it's not all censorship and cancel culture. The Future of Free Speech report found 89% of Americans across generations support the right to criticize government policy, showing that traditional political dissent still holds broad appeal.
But the lines are shifting. Young Americans may still value the principle of free speech, but they’re increasingly skeptical about applying it to offensive or provocative ideas, especially when those ideas target race, gender or religion.
Call it the privileged paradox of modern tolerance: The generation most fluent in social justice is also the most selective about who gets to speak.