Free speech is one of our most sacred rights in this country. Our founding fathers seemed to think so too, making sure it was granted to us in the first amendment to our constitution. People have defended their right to speak freely almost since the birth of our nation. Those who attended the first continental congresses undoubtedly met with great resentment and frustration because everyone was able to voice their own opinion. Everyone had his own ideas on how best the government should run.

But despite the seemingly endless arguments, those in the congress decided to ratify the first 10 amendments to the constitution they so painstakingly drafted. It is not surprising, then, that within the first amendment is the constitutionally protected right to free speech.

So why the quick history lesson? Because last week someone's right to free speech was trampled in a very public setting, and the mainstream news media all but ignored it.

On October 4, the College Republicans at Columbia University in New York invited Minuteman Project co-founder Jim Gilchrist to speak at their school. The auditorium where he was to speak housed about 350 people, many of whom were staunch opponents to Gilchrist's group. They held up signs and shouted slogans like "Workers of the world unite! Same struggle, same fight!" and "Minutemen, Nazis, KKK! Racists, fascists, go away!" according to WorldNetDaily.

Marvin Steward, a minister and a member of the Minuteman Project who happens to be black, spoke before Gilchrist and was met with racial epithets and taunts. Protestors shouted the N-word at him and called him a sell-out and an Uncle Tom. They called him a racist and many turned their backs to him toward the end of his speech. Undaunted, and slightly amused, Stewart finished speaking and proceeded to introduce Gilchrist.

When Gilchrist took the stage, the crowed seemed to erupt into a frenzy. Their chanting became louder, their sign waving became more forceful, and eventually about 20 or so protestors stormed the stage and effectively silenced Gilchrist for the night. Luckily for Gilchrist, campus security was able to rush him off stage and remove him and the other speakers from harm's way quickly.

Once on stage, the protestors unraveled a banner that read "No One Is Ever Illegal" in both English and Arabic. They chanted and pumped their fists for a few more minutes before campus security emptied the auditorium.

What happened to this country? What happened to our national dialogue? More often than not, this type of behavior is what I see when two opposing groups meet to debate or present ideas. There is no such thing as respect anymore. People believe what they want to believe, and if they are presented with something that calls those beliefs into question, they vehemently, and sometimes violently, oppose it.

Regardless of anyone's position on the issue of illegal immigration and the Minuteman Project, everyone should be outraged by the actions of these student protestors. Gilchrist was speaking at a university. He wasn't speaking at an illegal immigration rally or a Minuteman Project sponsored event, he was speaking somewhere where the free exchange of ideas is supposed to be encouraged. At one of our nation's premier schools, a group of students who didn't like what a speaker had to say effectively shouted, "We don't want to hear it, and we're not going to let you say it."

But this is the direction free speech has taken in recent years. People will stand up and defend their First Amendment right with every ounce of energy they have. But to most people, free speech is a one-way street. They believe they are entitled to it, but in turn don't believe others aren't granted the same freedom. They, like the protestors at Columbia, will trumpet their speech freedoms, all the while infringing on others' speech freedoms, like Jim Gilchrist and Marvin Stewart's.

This is not healthy for our nation. Our national dialogue is on life support, and every incident like this brings us closer and closer to pulling the plug and letting it die. The First Amendment grants everyone the right to free speech. Someone can't squelch someone else's right to free speech just because he or she doesn't like what the other person has to say. This, especially, should never happen in an academic setting, where the free exchange of ideas is central to the learning experience.

A peaceful protest is one thing, but denying someone his right to free speech is appalling. We, as a nation, should be disgusted with the student protestors at Columbia University who felt their right to free speech was more important than everyone else's. Only through the synthesis of new and different ideas can we come to true understanding in this world. Incidents like this do nothing but hinder that process.