First Amendment
How far to the First Amendment's protections go when it comes to hate speech?
As a journalist, I like to think I know a little something about the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.<p>Like most students in the United …
U.S. Supreme CourtSo, just how guaranteed is your freedom of speech online?
Following the violence in Charlottesville, Internet businesses have been disassociating themselves from far-right political groups. PayPal decided to …
CensorshipThe violence in Charlottesville set up a real conflict between the First and Second Amendments
When U.S. District Judge Glen E. Conrad rejected Charlottesville, Virginia’s attempt to relocate Saturday’s white nationalist rally, he wrote that “merely moving [the] demonstration to another park will not avoid a clash of ideologies” between demonstrators and counter-protesters. He also …
RacismACLU Caves: Will No Longer Defend Speech of 'White Supremacists' Who 'Incite Violence'
In a statement released Thursday, the national ACLU announced it has made a regressive decision to no longer defend certain forms of speech from …
Conservative ViewShould Protesters Be Allowed to Have Guns?
The Friday Cover<p>The Friday Cover is POLITICO Magazine's email of the week's best, delivered to your inbox every Friday morning.<p>Some say the armed militia members in Charlottesville were a threat to free speech. Is there anything they can do about it?<p>Of the many disturbing questions posed by the …
PoliticsA 'Broader' Understanding of the First Amendment That Excludes Right-Wing Racists
Writing in <i>The New York Times</i>, Park argues that the ACLU gives short shrift to barriers that prevent people of color from participating in democratic …
Freedom Of SpeechWhy can’t the government ban hate speech? Inside the Supreme Court’s reasoning
"Heightened Scrutiny" is a podcast exploring landmark SCOTUS cases. This episode: Free speech and fighting words<p>In the summer of 1990, several teenagers set fire to a crudely made cross on the lawn of an African-American family in St. Paul, Minnesota. One of those teenagers, known in court …
Liberal ViewAlt-Right network Gab removed from the Play Store
Google has removed alt-right social network Gab from the Play Store.<p>Google has removed alt-right social network <i>Gab</i> from the Play Store, the social …
Play StoreFree-Speech Rights and Hate Groups
<b>To the Editor:</b><p>Re “The A.C.L.U. Needs to Rethink Free Speech” (Op-Ed, Aug. 17):<p>K-Sue Park argues that the American Civil Liberties Union should rethink its approach to defending free speech after the tragic events in Charlottesville, Va. We are deeply sickened by the violence and mourn the lives …
OpinionFirst Amendment in Peril?
In the marketplace, traditionally understood, when a company produces a poor product or mistreats its customers, it faces market discipline—new ones …
Bill Of RightsOne idea for regulating Google and Facebook's control over content
We reported this morning on the mounting pressure on major web platforms over their role in moderating content. A conservative activist named Phil …
Net NeutralityWhat can be done about hate speech?
The tragic events in Charlottesville again raise the question of why expressions of hate should be tolerated and deemed protected by the First …
CensorshipWhite Nationalists, Neo-Nazis, and Constitutional Limits on Free Speech
On 17 August 2017, the <i>Washington Post</i> and other outlets reported on a joint statement released by the Northern, Central, and Southern California …
RacismDallas Morning News publisher earns award for being 'guiding light in protecting the First Amendment'
<i>Dallas Morning News</i> Publisher Jim Moroney will receive the James Madison Award from the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas next month.<p>The …
TexasNYT Op-Ed: ACLU Needs to Stop Defending Free Speech for Right-Wingers
The New York Times published an opinion article criticizing the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) for fighting on behalf of free speech for …
Rights & FreedomsHow the American right co-opted the idea of free speech
“The denial of first amendment rights…led to the political violence that we saw yesterday.” That was how Jason Kessler, who organized last weekend’s far-right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, explained the actions of an extremist who rammed his car into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing one …
Political CorrectnessTensions grow inside ACLU over defending speech rights for the far right
It was 1934, and fascism was on the march not only in Europe but also in America. People who admired Adolf Hitler, who had taken power in Germany, formed Nazi organizations inside the United States.<p>The American Civil Liberties Union, represented by lawyers who were Jewish, faced an existential …
Rights & FreedomsAfter Charlottesville, the First and Second Amendments Are Under Fire
The ACLU retreats from defending the rights of protesters who legally carry guns.<p>A very strange thing has happened since last weekend’s dreadful …
Conservative ViewACLU Under Fire for First Amendment Support for White Nationalist Group
<i>Screenshot/Facebook</i><p>The murderous “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Virginia has given the American Civil Liberties Union a case of deja vu. …
Rights & FreedomsPopehat: Internet Businesses Rejecting Racists Is an Exercise of Free Speech
There are so very many free speech/First Amendment controversies on in the wake of the Charlottesville unpleasantness, and in the run-up to planned …
Hate SpeechThe ACLU is wrestling over whether it should stand up for the far-right, especially when guns are involved
Since its founding during a period of anti-communist paranoia in 1920, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has served as a reliable line of …
Rights & FreedomsNYT Op-Ed: The ACLU Should Stop Defending Right-Winger's Freedom of Speech!
On Thursday, <i>The New York Times</i> published an opinion piece by a housing attorney named K-Sue Park that chastised the liberal-leaning American Civil …
Conservative ViewNational revulsion over the Charlottesville march shows why we shouldn’t ban hate speech
Charlottesville seems destined to become a symbol of the vexing challenges associated with freedom of speech in America. On Friday evening, a crowd seething with hatred and bigotry conducts a torchlight parade in a manner deliberately evocative of Nazi theater.<p>The next day they demonstrate, …
PoliticsLISTEN NOW: Full Audio of Ted Cruz Interview on the First Amendment and Our Moral Obligation
On Tuesday, Texas Senator Ted Cruz was a guest on the Mark Davis Show to discuss Charlottesville and the next steps for our nation.<p>Cruz rightly calls …
Conservative ViewWhite supremacist violence not free speech, California ACLU says
BERKELEY — The American Civil Liberties Union of California issued a statement Wednesday in the wake of violence at a white supremacist rally in …
RacismGigi Hadid Just Educated Her Followers On the First Amendment
A lesson in U.S. history, courtesy of Gigi Hadid.<p>Peppered in between Gigi Hadid's tweets about her latest campaigns, her various <i>Vogue</i> covers and cute …
Gigi HadidReporter's Notebook: Charlottesville unrest echoes past KKK clashes
I didn’t cover the Ku Klux Klan and white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., last weekend.<p>But I did cover one in 1990.<p>I was a student at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in the fall of 1989. I worked for several years as a reporter and news anchor while in high school and college at …
Ku Klux KlanEquality, Justice and the First Amendment
For all people of good will—regardless of party affiliation, race, creed, or color—the events that took place this weekend in Charlottesville were …
Liberal ViewDid the D.C. subway violate Milo Yiannopoulos' 1st Amendment rights?
Mass transit systems are more than a way to carry people to and from work; they also provide a prized platform for advertisers who covet the attention of a captive commuter audience. But what if a public transit agency worries that an advertisement will offend or scandalize some of its riders? An …
Milo YiannopoulosAfter Charlottesville, D.C. Police Say They're Ready To Keep Protests Peaceful
As the nation's capital, D.C. gets its fair share of yearly protests. And all of that First Amendment activity means that D.C. police get plenty of …
Charlottesville