Bill of Rights in Action - Free Speech

Bill of Rights in Action: Free Speech

Key Questions:• What is meant by the

term “free speech” in the 1st amendment?

• What type of speech do you think is protected?

• Are there any types of speech that might not be protected?

Could you be a political analyst?

Think about the answers to these questions, discuss with your partner and

prepare to share your ideas.

Enquiry Question:How much speech is “free” in the ‘Land of the Free’?

Learning Objectives• To deepen our understanding of 1st amendment rights• To describe how 1st amendment rights have been protected

by the US Supreme Court• To evaluate the extent to which free speech should be

protected by creating a constitutional amendment

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or

prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of

the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition

the Government for a redress of grievances.”

What rights does the 1ST Amendment protect?

In theory all of these rights are absolute but how does the 1st amendment work in practice?

What is the message of the Cartoon A?

What is the message of the Cartoon B?

What is the message of the Cartoon C?

What is the message of the Cartoon D?

What is the message of the Cartoon E?

How has the Supreme Court protected freedom of speech?

YOUR TASK:1. For each case, identify the

specific 1st amendment right that is/is not being protected.

2. Are there any cases you feel the protection of freedom of speech does not go far enough?

3. Are there any cases you feel the protection of freedom of speech goes too far?

“Religious beliefs need not be acceptable,

logical, consistent or comprehensible to others

in order to merit First Amendment protection” (Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy)

Can a similar argument be made for free

speech?

Should ALL speech be protected?Thinking Point

“There are certain well-defined and narrowly limited classes of speech, the prevention and punishment of which have never been

thought to raise any constitutional problem. These include the lewd and obscene, the profane, the libellous, and the insulting or 'fighting' words—those which by their very utterance inflict injury

or tend to incite an immediate breach of the peace. It has been well observed that such utterances are no essential part of any

exposition of ideas, and are of such slight social value as a step to truth that any benefit that may be derived from them is clearly

outweighed by the social interest in order and morality.”

Chaplinsky v. State of New Hampshire (1942)

Should ALL speech be protected?CASE STUDY

Dove World Outreach Center Quran-burning Controversy

How did people react?CASE STUDY

• Local fire department denied burning permit• Bank demanded immediate payment of

mortgage ($140,000)• Property insurance cancelled• Web hosting service disconnected internet

site (violation of terms and conditions)• Local council charge $200,000 for security

presence by the police department• US Dept of State spokesperson said he hoped

“there will be a range of voices across America that make clear to this community that this is not the way for us to commemorate 9/11”.


How did the federal government react?CASE STUDY

• President Barack Obama urged that the Quran burning be cancelled because it violated U.S. principles of religious tolerance.

• The president also expressed frustration that under the law, nothing could be done other than citing the church under a local ordinance for public burnings.


To what extent

should free speech be protected?

Key Question

NO AT ALL

COMPLETELY

LARGELY NOT

LARGELY

FAIRLY

SOMEWHAT

Constitutional Amendment

Could you be Founding Fathers?

• Based on your understanding of the current protection of free speech allowed by the 1st amendment, supreme court rulings and the debate regarding hate speech, propose a new constitutional amendment.

• Discuss (and come to a consensus on) the wording of a new amendment that will clarify the protection of free speech.

• To what extent is there disagreement about how effectively the Constitution protects freedom? (January 2010)

• The Supreme Court should interpret the Constitution and its amendments by establishing their original meaning when they were adopted.’ Discuss. (June 2011)

• Can the Bill of Rights be respected while the threat of terrorism remains? (June 2012)

• How effectively has the Bill of Rights been upheld in the USA in recent years? (June 2014)

Homework

TASKS:• Read “Why hate speech should be protected

(Essay)” on the VLE and reflect on today’s discussions.

• Read the following hand outs to prepare for next lesson:– Constitutional Amendments (Handout)– Proposed Constitutional Amendments

Approved by Congress (Handout)– Proposed Constitution Amendments Not

Approved by Congress (Handout)

How has the Supreme Court protected freedom?

• Near v. Minnesota (1931) Except in rare cases, censorship is unconstitutional.

• Roth v. United States (1957)Obscene material is not protected by the First Amendment.

• Engel v. Vitale (1962) Government-directed prayer in public schools, even if it is denominationally neutral and non-mandatory, violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

• Pickering v. Board of Education (1968)Teachers have a right to speak on issues of public importance without being dismissed from his or her position for personal views.

• Texas v. Johnson (1989) Law prohibiting burning of the American flag is unconstitutional as violating the First Amendment.

• R.A.V v City of St Paul (1992)Ruling overturned the conviction of a teenager, referred to in court documents only as R.A.V., for burning a cross on the lawn of an African American family.

• Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993)City ordinances preventing the sacrifice of animals deemed to be unconstitutional as violating freedom of exercise of religious worship.

• Hill v. Colorado (2000)Ruling that the First Amendment right to free speech was not violated by a Colorado law limiting protest, education, distribution of literature or counselling within eight feet of a person entering a health-care facility.

http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/cases/topics/tog_freedom_of_speech.html

How has the Supreme Court protected freedom?

• Near v. Minnesota (1931) Except in rare cases, censorship is unconstitutional.

• Roth v. United States (1957)Obscene material is not protected by the First Amendment.

• Engel v. Vitale (1962) Government-directed prayer in public schools, even if it is denominationally neutral and non-mandatory, violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.

• Pickering v. Board of Education (1968)Teachers have a right to speak on issues of public importance without being dismissed from his or her position for personal views.

• Texas v. Johnson (1989) Law prohibiting burning of the American flag is unconstitutional as violating the First Amendment.

• R.A.V v City of St Paul (1992)Ruling overturned the conviction of a teenager, referred to in court documents only as R.A.V., for burning a cross on the lawn of an African American family.

• Church of Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993)City ordinances preventing the sacrifice of animals deemed to be unconstitutional as violating freedom of exercise of religious worship.

• Hill v. Colorado (2000)Ruling that the First Amendment right to free speech was not violated by a Colorado law limiting protest, education, distribution of literature or counselling within eight feet of a person entering a health-care facility.








Bill of Rights in Action - Free Speech

Education

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