Spain’s freedom of speech laws are and have historically been much stricter than those here in the United States.
However, there are more similarities between the two countries in the laws’ application and enforcement than one may think.
The New York Times reported two Spanish puppeteers were arrested in early February for displaying a satirical puppet show on the streets of Madrid.
The show was a political commentary on the paranoia of legal authorities in Europe. It featured police officers attempting to ensnare and arrest a “witch” by falsely accusing her of being affiliated with a terrorist group.
They are now facing up to seven years of jail time for actions that the police perceived to be glorifying terrorism.
We the Editorial Board believe the irony is very apparent. Arresting puppeteers who criticize the police for their “witch hunts” in this way shows the message of the puppeteers is true.
The legal controversy surrounding the show stems from the idea of whether or not the portrayal of police and the threat of terrorism took free speech too far.
But if the speech is pointing out shortcomings in a society’s system, it may be doing more good than harm in raising awareness of the issue.
The puppeteers in Spain did just that.
Their show responded to wrongful arrests that have been taking place since Spanish officials arrested a young woman for apparently inciting terrorism by speaking out against the Prime Minister on Twitter in 2014.
It may be easy to say the puppeteer’s arrest was heinous or uncalled for and that it would not happen here because of our superior freedom of speech laws.
The arrest isn’t unlike the countless arrests made in Black Lives Matter demonstrations.
These activists are standing up and using free speech ,not to incite danger, but to call out the flaws in our justice system.
Yet they are met with seizure or aggression, displaying the very behavior they seek to change.
In fact, many of the demonstrations at which activists have been arrested have been peaceful, including recent ones in Philadelphia and Minneapolis.
The protests were almost as peaceful as, say, a street puppet show.
The occurrences in Spain and in America regarding arrests by police are eerily similar. It is impossible for us to condemn this puppet incident for a violation of freedom of speech while standing on our own shaky ground.
In both countries, police failed to allow for freedom of expression and freedom to assemble on the basis it was directed at them.
Perhaps, then, drawing attention to the truth constitutes “taking freedom of speech too far.” That is, if it does not shed a country’s authorities in a good light.
