Tracking the modern progress of the First Amendment
Posted in Freedom of Speech on Feb 15th, 2008
Flemming Rose, culture editor of the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten, wrote an interesting op-ed in this morning’s Washington Post about the world’s growing intolerance of anti-religious views. He should know; he was behind the decision to publish cartoons of the prophet Muhammad in fall 2005, which resulted in massive rioting and more than 100 deaths, in […]
Posted in Freedom of Religion on Feb 10th, 2008
Professor Guillermo Gonzalez, known at Iowa State University as a vocal supporter of intelligent design theory, is well aware of the controversy his views have stirred up over the years.
One indicator could have been the 2005 circulation of a campus-wide petition denouncing intelligent design (the belief that the universe was deliberately created by a […]
Posted in Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Speech on Feb 10th, 2008
A group of 11 protesters will get another day in court Monday as they move forward with a civil lawsuit arising from arrests at a gay pride rally in 2004.
Members of the Christian organization Repent America were taken into custody at the Philadelphia event after using bullhorns to quote Bible verses to hundreds of rally […]
Posted in Freedom of Speech on Feb 9th, 2008
Anyone who has spent time on an Internet message board has met one: That irritating guy who spouts defamatory nonsense on every subject from partisan politics to racist propaganda—a “troll,” as he is commonly known—is a staple of online discourse.
He may be obnoxious, but now his right to play virtual tough-guy is legally protected. A […]
Posted in Freedom of Speech on Feb 9th, 2008
Another victory this week for outrageousness in advertising: the Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that a controversial ad that ran in the Sun-Times last fall did not meet standards for defamation and should be protected under the First Amendment.
The ad, paid for by the Chicago clothing retailer Cosmo’s Designer Direct, appears to contain veiled references […]
Posted in Freedom of the Press on Feb 6th, 2008
The Los Angeles City Council wants people to stay away from Britney Spears. Probably good advice.
But because some people insist, Councilman Dennis Zine called for a city ordinance Thursday to place limits on how close paparazzi can get to people they photograph, because, he says, there is an inherent safety risk associated with the chaotic […]
Posted in Redress of Grievances on Feb 3rd, 2008
Three people arrested for violating an Oklahoma petition law pleaded not guilty this week to charges of conspiracy to defraud the state.
The three – Paul Jacob, Rick Carpenter and Susan Johnson – were indicted after taking part in a petitioning campaign in October in which they called for, among other things, inclusion of a […]
Posted in Freedom of the Press on Feb 2nd, 2008
The ACLU issued a statement Friday criticizing a federal grand jury’s motion to subpoena a New York Times reporter in an effort to question him about his confidential sources.
The reporter, James Risen, wrote a book that includes a chapter on a CIA operation to dismantle the Iranian nuclear program. The grand jury is seeking information […]
Posted in Speech in Education on Feb 2nd, 2008
A Florida public school board voted Thursday in favor of a resolution to pressure state education officials to change recently imposed standards that they regard as a mandate to teach evolution “as scientific fact.”
Members of the Nassau County School Board want the standards to include language “such that evolution is not presented at the exclusion […]
Posted in Freedom of Speech on Feb 2nd, 2008
A federal judge has exonerated five anti-war protesters who were ticketed for encouraging passing motorists to “honk for peace.” The protesters, and one driver who had honked in support, had been cited for disturbing the peace (ironic, no?).
The ACLU’s Michigan office intervened in April, suing the city of Ferndale for violating the group’s First Amendment […]
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