Resolution Defending Freedom of Speech and Condemning the Ranking of Speech by Purported Dignity or Other Virtues

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January 15, 2026

Resolution Defending Freedom of Speech and Condemning the Ranking of Speech by Purported Dignity or Other Virtues

Sponsored by Cristy Henshaw

Adopted by the State Central Committee on January 10, 2026

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WHEREAS, freedom of speech is the bedrock of a free society, enabling the open exchange of ideas, the pursuit of truth, and the protection of individual liberty against tyranny; and

WHEREAS, the right to speak freely, without fear of censorship or reprisal, is indispensable to human dignity, intellectual growth, and democratic governance; and

WHEREAS, attempts to rank, score, or index speech according to subjective notions of “dignity,” “decency,” or “harm” inevitably reflect the biases, preferences, and cultural assumptions of those designing the metrics; and

WHEREAS, such ranking systems outsource the development of emotional intelligence, moral judgment, and are run by unavoidably biased boards, algorithms, institutions, or authorities, thereby eroding personal responsibility and civic maturity; and

WHEREAS, history demonstrates that centralized control over acceptable speech—whether by governments, corporations, or social consensus—leads to the suppression of dissent, the stagnation of thought, and the politicization of truth; and

WHEREAS, virtues such as kindness, honesty, courage, and humility are rightly admired and ought to be cultivated through education, example, and voluntary persuasion, not enforced through coercive or incentivized ranking or algorithmic gatekeeping; and

WHEREAS, the subjective nature of “dignity” and that it is acquired externally renders any universal index not only impractical but dangerous, as it empowers transient majorities or powerful minorities to silence voices they deem unworthy; and

WHEREAS, outsourcing the ranking of speech to subjective, external systems diminishes individual agency, fosters fragility, fingerpoints, shames, and produces significant political outcomes marked by conformity and resentment, and;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED:

  1. That freedom of speech, in all its forms—peaceful, provocative, polite, or offensive, and outside of obscene content—shall be defended unequivocally as a fundamental and non-negotiable right.
  2. That any system, public or private, which ranks, scores, or filters speech based on subjective assessments of dignity, harm, or social value is hereby condemned as an assault on liberty and an invitation to authoritarianism.
  3. That virtues remain essential to human flourishing but must be promoted through conscience, culture, and voluntary association—not through top-down indexing or technological enforcement.
  4. That individuals and communities claim responsibility for their emotional and intellectual responses to speech, rejecting the false comfort of outsourced judgment.
  5. That no algorithm, board, panel, or policy shall stand in loco parentis to the adult mind.
  6. That children be protected from being subjected to, in all forms and to every degree, any systemic speech code promoted by state education or its partners that ranks, scores, or measures the purported meritoriousness of speech or teaches a bias toward conformity of expression.
  7. That no individual, entity, or group that receives public funding in any form is allowed to provide or facilitate in-person or electronic training, classes, or education on systematic speech that espouses ranking, scoring, measures, or programs. 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this resolution reflects the values and principles of the Utah Republican Party as expressed in our commitment to the Bill of Rights and the First Amendment; and that if passed, this body DIRECTS that copies (emails) of this resolution be transmitted to:

  1. The Federal Delegation; 
  2. The Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives;
  3. The President of the Utah Senate;
  4. The State Board of Education; 
  5. All School Boards; 
  6. Every municipality



Sponsor: Cristy Henshaw

Co-sponsor: Mike Carpenter, Keri Guinn, Kris Kimball, Wendy Hart, Scott Schultz, Natalie Cline, Melanie Mortensen, Carolyn Phippen, Mari Eddy, Kaye Sanderson, Patty Sprunt, Teena Horlacher, Neil Sebring, June Rigby