The Torah, in Leviticus 19:16, states:
לֹא-תֵלֵךְ רָכִיל בְּעַמֶּיךָ
“Do not go around spreading slander among your people…”
This verse has always been understood to deal with the prohibition of spreading gossip inside the covenantal community of Torah. Unfortunately, throughout the years there has been a massive abuse of this law, reaching a point where people would use the claim that something is “lashon hara” (literally meaning “evil tongue” or “evil speech”) as a tool to silence people when their statements are uncomfortable for the listener. This, unfortunately, is an incorrect interpretation of the law and is, in truth, a demagogy.
