Hundreds of years ago the term, “freedom of speech” was developed during the creation of the First Amendment in 1791, where it was stated that anyone could share their thoughts, opinions, etc. freely without punishment from the government. Today, that has not changed, it is still a term defined as the right of a person to express their thoughts or opinions without interference from the government. We see many examples of this liberty being used and one way would be through education. This idea of free speech heavily contributes to American college students' intellectual and personal development today. Today, it is common among students, especially at the college level, to share their ideas, opinions, religious beliefs, etc. without repercussions. Part of this is because it can spark debates, and the other part is it helps keep ideas flowing. To have a space where your voice is not only protected but also heard is very important because it can lead to new ideas, thoughts, etc. For example, our school is the only Catholic HBCU at Xavier University of Louisiana. Though not everyone identifies as Catholic, we all are required to take theology courses that are dedicated to different topics catered to different interests. It allows students to engage in discussions that they may have not had the space growing up to discuss, without being judged. This also introduces the many types of theologies there are, which won’t just benefit someone spiritually, or academically, it could also become a new topic of interest of theirs. While being a student at Xavier, I realized that freedom of speech is a fundamental right that needs to be preserved. This right, as mentioned, is essential in engaging discussions that give people the right to discuss their own thoughts and opinions without judgment. But, while being here at Xavier I also saw how important this right is through both Psychology and extracurriculars that I am a part of. On campus, I am very active, and one group that I am the most active in is the NAACP chapter here. We typically do service, and have fun events, but something that we’ve done on multiple occasions has spread awareness on voting. With this year being an election year and multiple laws being enacted especially here in Louisiana, it is important to get young people involved. If we weren’t allowed to have freedom of speech it would be much harder for groups such as NAACP to spread messages centering on the topic of voting, which does affect all of us in the long run. Alongside NAACP fostering these conversations about voting, we also provide safe spaces for people to come talk to us. Recently we did a “Girl Talk” where everyone was allowed to speak freely. This is important, especially now because a lot of people don’t feel like they have a safe space to talk about what’s on their mind. Based on the outcome of the event, we want to continue to advance the preservation of free speech on campus, whether it’s through girl talks, political talks, game nights, etc. Overall, free speech is very important because it contributes to one’s intellectual well-being especially at the college level. This is a fundamental right that needs to be preserved because it fosters new ideas and discussions, and we see many examples of it being used quite often. I’ve seen it on my own simply by participating in extracurriculars such as the NAACP chapter here at Xavier, which has helped me realize that.