This column is reprinted with the approval of Freedom Forum.
Freedom Forum’s 2025 “Where America Stands” survey results mark notable shifts in attitudes toward the First Amendment at a moment when the five freedoms — religion, speech, press, assembly and petition — are dominating the national conversation.
Headlines, TV punditry and online posts feature legislative and court battles over the free speech rights of universities and the free press rights of news organizations. There are debates over presidential parody and disagreement over the free-speech rights of non-citizens and students. Parents, teachers and school boards nationwide clash over what can be taught and to whom. Tension over protesters’ rights builds on the streets, in public parks and on college campuses.
The survey sheds light on what Americans think and feel about our core freedoms amid these headlines and debates: What do we know about the five freedoms protected by the First Amendment? How do we rate the First Amendment itself? To what extent do we want to defend these rights?
And how do we think these essential freedoms affect today’s challenges and opportunities — and our role in a participatory democracy?
Where America Stands 2025: Key takeaways
This year’s survey revealed notable movement in knowledge and beliefs about the First Amendment — and some that didn’t change as much:
- Most Americans continue to be aware of the First Amendment, most would not change it and most see it as vital or extremely vital to our democracy — even though 28% are uncertain how to apply its role to their daily lives, up from 23% in 2024.
- 64% percent say they would not change the First Amendment’s 45 words, which were ratified in 1791 — up from 54% five years ago.
- 58% agree the First Amendment rights of citizens and non-citizens should be protected equally, though 55% support deportation of non-citizen students who break the law and injure people or damage property during a protest.
- 32% say preventing hate speech is more important than protecting free speech — the lowest number since 2020 and a signal that people are less willing to trade off their First Amendment rights.
- There was a significant increase in respondents who say “nothing keeps me from speaking freely” — from 29% in 2024 to 35% in 2025. Younger people are more fearful than any other age group of some kind of consequence for speaking freely— fearful of violence, of “being perceived in a certain way,” of tension with family or friends, or of being fired.
Ranking the core freedoms of the First Amendment
When it comes to ranking First Amendment freedoms, 39% of Americans say speech is most essential, followed by religion (12%), then freedom of the press (4%), petition (4%) and assembly (3%).
Many of the nation’s founders viewed assembly and petition as the primary ways to “speak truth to power”; they saw those two freedoms as encouraging civic engagement and protecting all essential liberties.
President Trump: ‘Protector’ or ‘threat’ to core freedoms?
The 2024 “Where America Stands” survey asked respondents which presidential candidate they viewed as more of a threat or protector to the First Amendment. This year’s survey followed up on that question and dug deeper, asking respondents whether they view President Donald Trump as a protector of or a threat to each of the First Amendment freedoms.
Overall, around half of respondents view President Trump as a threat to First Amendment freedoms — with the exception of religion (39%). Millennials, men and white respondents are less likely to view him as a “threat.” Women, baby boomers and Gen Xers are more likely to see him as a threat.
Meanwhile, just under one-third of respondents overall view Trump as a protector of First Amendment rights — with the highest ratings for religion (34%) and lowest for press (28%). White respondents (36%) are much more likely than Black respondents (25%) to see him as a protector of freedom of religion. Around one-third of Hispanic respondents see Trump as a protector of religion (31%), press (30%) and petition (32%). Among Asian respondents, around one-third see him as a protector of religion (33%) and speech (30%).
Free press as ‘watchdog on government’ — but under threat
Sixty-one percent overall say it’s important for the press to be a “watchdog on government,” up from 56% in 2024. But the survey notes “this is a demographically divided perspective.”
More men (68%) than women (54%) see the press in that role, as do baby boomers (69%) and Gen X (67%) compared to millennials (51%) and Gen Z (49%). There is a sizeable difference in how that “watchdog role” is seen between white respondents (64%) and Black (52%), with Hispanics at 56% and Asians at 61%.
The survey also found Americans see a free press as the most threatened of the five freedoms under President Trump.
Less than half of survey respondents say social media platforms (47%) and digital video sites (43%) are protected by freedom of the press. This is contrary to recent court rulings: The U.S. Supreme Court heard its first social media case in 2017, and in 2024, it held that social media platforms are engaged in activities protected by the First Amendment — although it has yet to set the full range of First Amendment protections for these platforms. Debate continues over how much control government at any level can exert over such sites.
Religious liberty and its intersection with schools, antidiscrimination laws
Much of the current legal action in this area is around school curricula or services to LGBTQ+ people. The survey found 49% of respondents overall believe parents of elementary school students should be able to opt their children out from reading certain books based on the family’s religious beliefs. This issue was the subject of a 2025 Supreme Court case in which the court ruled in favor of parents who had requested an opt-out option for certain school readings on religious freedom grounds. Just 31% say teachers should be able to opt out of teaching materials for that same reason.
Thirty-one percent of respondents say businesses should be able to refuse service to a customer when citing religious beliefs — down from 38% in 2023. That year, the Supreme Court ruled that a Christian website designer cannot be required to create wedding websites for same-sex couples when doing so would violate the designer’s religious beliefs.
Hate speech and free speech on college campuses
The U.S. Supreme Court has held in multiple decisions that “hate speech” is protected expression under the First Amendment — even if the violent conduct it might inspire is not. This year, survey responses reflected the court’s rulings, with 32% of respondents overall saying that preventing hate speech is more important than protecting free speech. This number has decreased from a high of 39% in 2023.
A major reason for the change: Younger Americans indicate they are more strongly in favor of protecting free speech. Gen Z’s agreement that preventing hate speech is more important than protecting free speech has declined from 2022’s high of 41% to 19% this year, while millennials peaked at 44% in 2023 and dipped to 31% this year.
Meanwhile, about 60% of Americans say colleges “should foster a free exchange of ideas, even if they are offensive to some.” But 37% of respondents say the government should be able to hold colleges and universities accountable when those institutions don’t punish students who engage in illegal protests. Gen Z —the age group most likely to include current or recent college students — is least likely to agree with that view.
Overall, Americans see their First Amendment freedoms as vital
The 2025 survey paints a portrait of America that, by more than 90%, supports the idea of the First Amendment as vital to our country, while also demonstrating high awareness in areas involving speech and religious liberty — but with some of that awareness and support ebbing, especially among younger citizens, when asked about rights such as the free press.
And while First Amendment support is rooted in high awareness, the survey also found Americans less able than last year to see how these five freedoms affect their daily lives — with many fearful of speaking out. Among the 65% who say in the survey they are fearful, they most often cited the threat of a violent response and fear of creating tension with friends and family.
While the First Amendment does not insulate us from reaction to our views, it does protect us from government censorship or retaliation — with a goal of encouraging citizen participation in a self-governing system.
That the 2025 survey found differences of opinions, or even contradictory views in some cases, is to be expected. The need for a First Amendment anticipated robust discussion and debate — hopefully leading to a better democratic republic for all.
Freedom Forum’s 2025 “Where America Stands” survey results track a frequent observation by the late John Seigenthaler — journalist, author, long-standing Freedom Forum trustee, and a staunch defender of the First Amendment: Our First Amendment freedoms “are never safe, never secure, but always in the process of being made safe and secure.”
Gene Policinski is a senior fellow for the First Amendment at Freedom Forum. He can be reached at gpolicinski@freedomforum.org.
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