Quote of the day—John P. Zenger

No nation ancient or modern ever lost the liberty of freely speaking, writing, or publishing their sentiments, but forthwith lost their liberty in general and became slaves.

John P. Zenger
[Read the article linked to. The context for this quote is not the least bit frivolous. His case established freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and jury nullification in this country. And Zenger died in 1746—30 years before the Declaration of Independence!—Joe]

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One thought on “Quote of the day—John P. Zenger

  1. I did a paper on Zenger for a college history class. I bring out his case every time I’m in an argument with someone about jury nullification. It’s pretty hard for them to keep railing against it when shown that the reason our country has such a long history of respecting freedom of speech is directly attributable to the practice.

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