The distinction is really important. Every banned-from-a-forum troll argues "suppressing my freedom of speech!" Not if it's a soapbox that you don't own and it's not the government.
You are conflating the legal consequences of the American 1'st amendment with a much broader concept of free speech. There's a lot more to the concept than that.
I actually live (part time) in a country where people who speak against the consensus may be socially ostracized, they are at risk of being fired from their job and blacklisted, and they are at risk of violence from non-government parties. The government often turns a blind eye to such violence. People with views outside the mainstream are afraid to speak up.
The government takes little direct action to hinder speech. Do you believe I really have free speech?
