Speakers' Corner, Hyde Park, London
by Tagishsimon, http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Speakers_Corner.jpg, and used under GNU Free Documentation License
Speakers' Corner is an area in the northeast corner of Hyde Park, London, where public speaking is allowed. Here, speakers are allowed to speak their mind as long as the police consider their speeches do not breach the law.
However, contrary to popular belief, there is no immunity from the law nor are any subjects proscribed. While the authorities are tolerent, the police do intervene if they received complaints or hear bad language.
Most people go to Speakers' Corner to listen to speakers whose views are distinctly off the mainstream, as they in themselves are a spectacle and a form of public amusement. However, Speakers' Corner has also been frequented by such people as Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin, George Orwell, and William Morris. Its very existence is a demonstration of the principle of free speech, that anyone can arrive unannounced and talk about any subject. That they will be heckled is just part of the hazards of free speech.
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