A recent poll by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), a First Amendment organization, reveals that nearly one-third of Americans, including similar proportions of Republicans and Democrats, feel that the First Amendment provides excessive rights.

Additionally, over half of the respondents indicated that their local community should not permit public speeches endorsing beliefs they personally find offensive.

FIRE Chief Research Adviser Sean Stevens expressed disappointment with these findings, stating in a press release on Tuesday, “Those results were disappointing, but not exactly surprising.

Here at FIRE, we’ve long observed that many people who say they’re concerned about free speech waver when it comes to beliefs they personally find offensive, Reason reported.

But the best way to protect your speech in the future is to defend the right to controversial and offensive speech today.”

Conducted in collaboration with the Polarization Research Lab (PRL) at Dartmouth College, the survey gathered opinions from 1,000 Americans on free speech and expression.

The results highlighted that over two-thirds of respondents believed that America was moving in the wrong direction concerning the freedom to express views.

Moreover, only 25 percent of those surveyed agreed that the right to free speech was “very” or “completely” secure.

Written by B.C. Begley