Aaron Terr(@aaronterr1):"Hate speech" is not a magic phrase that lets the government sidestep the First Amendment. Yet the Columbia Police Department in South Carolina posted this image on its Facebook page and maintains a policy banning "inappropriate" and "offensive" comments. Government officials can't censor speech, online or off, just because they dislike or are offended by it. Period. FIRE is calling on @ColumbiaPDSC to take down the post and bring its social media policies and practices into compliance with the First Amendment.

Aaron Terr

@aaronterr1

Director of Public Advocacy @theFIREorg | Views are my own.

Joined April 2021

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Aaron Terr@aaronterr1

2026.08.07 14:52

"Hate speech" is not a magic phrase that lets the government sidestep the First Amendment. Yet the Columbia Police Department in South Carolina posted this image on its Facebook page and maintains a policy banning "inappropriate" and "offensive" comments. Government officials can't censor speech, online or off, just because they dislike or are offended by it. Period. FIRE is calling on @ColumbiaPDSC to take down the post and bring its social media policies and practices into compliance with the First Amendment.