<p>A vital liberal democracy prospers from citizens who not only embrace the principle of free speech but can also balance free speech against other principles when in conflict. Recent studies revealed the existence of this conditional support for free speech. This raises the question of how people learn to navigate and balance the dilemmas around free speech. This panel study examines the socialization process underpinning conditional support for free speech by focusing on the ‘impressionable years’ of adolescence. Our results show high and generally growing support for freedom of speech among adolescents as they age. With age, attitudes are increasingly structured by three factors: free speech related to (i) state-citizen relationships, (ii) citizen-citizen interactions, and (iii) violence. Social identities influence support for free speech, but group identification is not set in stone: some identities (based on religious denomination) lose influence on support for free speech, while others (based on gender or educational groups) grow in importance. Moreover, we find little evidence of the direct influence of socialization agents on free speech support attitudes. The notable exception is that teacher interactions decrease support for violent free speech. Overall, we demonstrate that support for free speech is contingent upon context and activated identities.</p>