Essay On The First Amendment
The first amendment of the United States Constitution protects citizens’ rights to; freedom of the press, peaceful assembly, religious freedom, the right to petition the government, and the right to free speech. The Constitution itself asserts: “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” Interpreting the first amendment has always been a subject for debate, and many citizens of the United States are unaware of what is actually protected by the first amendment, specifically in regards to freedom of speech. This lack …show more content…
There are currently no constitutional limits on hate speech, even though many community areas such as college campuses have passed restrictions. Any law that restricts hate speech is actually unconstitutional as of right now, and to move forward with an agenda that would restrict speech in this way on a federal level is simply not supported by the Constitution. Attempting to pass a law that defines hateful speech and outlaws it would be a violation of the first amendment, as it would be very difficult to do so in a way that does not infringe on other liberties granted under the first amendment. Many of those who support hate speech as a first amendment right argue that hateful words do not incite violence unless that violence already existed, and would have happened with or without encouragement. This is a nice thought, and in a perfect world it would even be true, however, this notion is not supported by the massive amount of evidence showing violent acts encouraged by hateful speech. While yes, it would be difficult to enact a law limiting hateful speech, and such a plan would initially meet with heavy opposition, it is not impossible to protect citizens of our country from violence and the normalization of violent
Westboro Baptist Church Soldier's Funerals Summary
1091 Words | 5 PagesWhether laws intend to limit the offensive power of a minority or protect a minority from attacks, either way rights are lost. In the words of Roger Baldwin, founder of the civil liberties union, “In order to defend the people you like, you have to defend the people you hate.” Roger Baldwin’s statement indicates that if we limit the free speech of one group we ultimately limit our own freedoms. The first Amendment clearly states the limiting of any groups right is unconstitutional, “make no law … abridging the freedom of speech.” The basis behind not allowing the government to define free speech allows Americans to create their own social order and among themselves determine what is acceptable.
Fourth Amendment Pros And Cons Essay
562 Words | 3 PagesAlong time ago there was a king in England who would take colonists homes, put us in prison, and not tell us why. The king would take our guns which we needed to protect ourselves back then. We got into a war when we were trying to free ourselves from England. We won the war so we created a new government. But we wanted to have some rules the government has to follow so this new government doesn 't do the same thing the old garment did.
Sorry College Kids There's No Such Thing As Hate Speech Analysis
294 Words | 2 PagesIn the article “Sorry, College Kids, There’s No Such Thing As Hate Speech” by The Federalist. The author John Daniel Davidson believes there is so no such thing as hate speech unless it is a crime. I agree with the author, you can say what you want unless it causes a riot or a crime is committed. [1]The case, which involved a white teenager burning a cross made from taped-together broken chair legs in the front yard of a black family that lived across the street, went to the U.S. Supreme Court. In this case I believe if no one was hurt and there wasn’t any damage to the property the white teenager shouldn’t be convicted.
First Amendment Summary
419 Words | 2 PagesThe First Amendment which prohibits the making of any law abridging the freedom of speech protects a citizen’s right, in limited circumstances, to speak out on matters of public concern. (Berman E 2013, pg. 63) Public employment or private doesn’t stop an employee from expressing himself. Determining when an employee has crossed the line can be difficult. This brings me to an article, “Employee Facebook Likes Are Protected Activity, Appellate Court Rules,” on xpertHR website.
Informative Essay: The Amazing Amendment
483 Words | 2 PagesThe first amendment The first amendment allows citizens to express and to and to exposed to a wide range of opinions and views. According to www.law.cornell.edu congress shall make no law for following only one religion, or prohibiting the free exercise. On september 25th, 1789,
Should The First Amendment Be Considered Hateful?
107 Words | 1 PagesIn my interpretation of the First Amendment, the rights of the people to freely express their opinions, even if unpopular, is clearly protected. Specifically, hate speech is not clearly defined and may differ between people. Individuals and groups can disagree on if specific issues may be considered hateful. Advocates of, what some may consider as hate speech, will likely disagree that their opinions on an issue would be considered hate speech. Protecting all speech, including hate speech, should only imply that the government is following the first amendment to not interfere or be prejudice against anyone expressing their opinions if done so with regard to other laws.
Essay On 1st Amendment
711 Words | 3 PagesIf the 1st amendment never came to pass then the U.S. and most likely the world would be much different. The U.S. would probably be more focused on maintaining the Christian religion to the point of war. Which will leave the U.S. very vulnerable and we will definitely not be the land of the free. In regards to the most recent presidential election, I believe there needs to be a mandatory test you have to pass in order to vote.
The Pros And Cons Of The First Amendment
949 Words | 4 PagesThe first amendment grants protection for American citizens to have freedom of speech. It protects five general areas: speech, religion, press, right to petition the government, and right to assemble. Freedom of the press is a protection that is necessary for journalists, photographers, news corporations and all media. Without the protection, journalists would not be able to uphold their promise to deliver the truth to citizens who do not have the same access to politics, world news and current events the way the journalism industry does. Ultimately, the first amendment grants the press special privileges, but they are not guaranteed all access.
Hate Speech College Campuses
1116 Words | 5 PagesFrom the speeches proclaimed in Nazi Germany, to the words spoken by Stalin, that were utilized for nothing more than power gain in the world stage, no hate speech was factually driven and meant to not create a detrimental impact on those it was personally
First Amendment Bill Of Rights
155 Words | 1 PagesThe First Amendment of the United States Constitution protects the right of “freedom of speech” Bill of Rights, n.d., p. 1). It was designed to guarantee a free exchange of ideas, even if the ideas are unpopular. One of the most controversial free speech issues involves hate speech. Hate speech is a public expression of discrimination against a vulnerable group, based on “race, ethnicity, religion,” and sexual orientation (Karman, 2016, p. 3940). Under the First Amendment there is no exception to hate speech; although, hateful ideas are protected just as other ideas.
Essay On First Amendment In Schools
462 Words | 2 PagesThe first amendment of our Constitution states that we as citizens have the right to freedom of speech, granting us the right to express ourselves as individuals without interference or constraint from the government. But does this right apply to students in your average public school? The Supreme Court has ruled that the government has the right to prohibit speech that disrupts peace or causes violence, especially in public schools. In fact, there have been multiple instances in which the Supreme Court has gotten involved in the first amendment rights of public school students.
Charles Lawrence Racist Speech Summary
770 Words | 4 PagesCharles Lawrence in his racist speech tries to convince that racist speech needs to be regulated. He argues that hate speech is intolerable in the United States because it represents discrimination which Everyone defines hate speech differently. I define hate speech as anything that incites aggression regarding one person or a group of people. Now a day’s people uses free speech as a defense for saying anything but discriminating someone is not free speech.
Prohibiting Hate Speech
207 Words | 1 PagesThe culture of America to act in violence when someone disagrees with someone, in my opinion, will never result in progress or solving said disagreement. Screaming at someone and disrespecting someone will not result in them realizing they are wrong, but conversation or peaceful protest has the potential to alter one’s ideas. An idea that struck me, instead of having written code about prohibiting hate speech, why not construct a code that requires a certain percentage of students to sign a petition avoiding that person from speaking on campus. At the same time, to counter that, if an X percentage amount of people sign something requesting for this person to speak at their campus then that person will be allowed and these people are expected
Racist Speech As The Functional Equivalent Of Fighting Words
707 Words | 3 PagesHate speech includes, but is not limited to, gesture, conduct, writing, or verbal communication that might encourage discriminatory behavior to a protected individual or group of individuals. Many universities are committed to creating an atmosphere of equal opportunity that harbors talent, creativity and ingenuity. Speech codes are not only justifiable, but are also essential to campuses because they do not allow the use of hate speech. One who is for the use of speech codes on campuses may argue alongside Lawrence in saying that it is unacceptable to use hate speech in any scenario or environment because it suppresses the voices of minorities. Lawrence presents the idea that “the subordinate victims of fighting words are silenced by their relatively powerless position in society.”
Should Hate Speech And Should It Be Protected Under The First Amendment?
285 Words | 2 PagesAlthough hate speech is bigoted, hate-mongering, and can potentially lead to hate crimes, it should still be considered free speech. If citizens of the United States are not allowed to be verbal about their beliefs, whether or not they are offensive and hateful, then there is no use in allowing free speech. Placing limitations on free speech contradicts the First Amendment, therefore making it inaccurate and useless.
More about Essay On The First Amendment
Westboro Baptist Church Soldier's Funerals Summary
1091 Words | 5 PagesFourth Amendment Pros And Cons Essay
562 Words | 3 PagesSorry College Kids There's No Such Thing As Hate Speech Analysis
294 Words | 2 PagesFirst Amendment Summary
419 Words | 2 PagesInformative Essay: The Amazing Amendment
483 Words | 2 PagesShould The First Amendment Be Considered Hateful?
107 Words | 1 PagesEssay On 1st Amendment
711 Words | 3 PagesThe Pros And Cons Of The First Amendment
949 Words | 4 PagesHate Speech College Campuses
1116 Words | 5 PagesFirst Amendment Bill Of Rights
155 Words | 1 PagesEssay On First Amendment In Schools
462 Words | 2 PagesCharles Lawrence Racist Speech Summary
770 Words | 4 PagesProhibiting Hate Speech
207 Words | 1 PagesRacist Speech As The Functional Equivalent Of Fighting Words
707 Words | 3 PagesShould Hate Speech And Should It Be Protected Under The First Amendment?
285 Words | 2 Pages