Black Bloc, Free Speech, and the Extreme Right Threat

Right now, the left has been wrong-footed on the issue of free speech.  The right-wing extremists are gaining in part because they have been aided by media coverage that – at least up until the Portland murders – portrayed them as victims being deprived of their rights to speech and assembly. Unfortunately, too many of their opponents have played into their hands by opposing not just free speech for Nazis, but the right to free speech in general – and I’m not just talking about the black bloc.