Here Butler presents an analysis of speech in contemporary political life, with a particular focus on the American context where hate speech laws, anti-pornography statues, and the military ‘don’t ask don’t tell’ policy shed light on how speech is regulated and treated as potentially injurious by the law. Grounded in Butler’s long-standing analysis of the performative aspects of language. See in particular the texts Burning Acts, Injurious Speech and Implicit Censorship and Discursive Agency.