Civil liberties
Rights and freedoms that protect against government dictating how individuals act
Civil rights
legal rights that protect individuals from discrimination
Bill of rights
First 10 amendments to the Constitution. They are specifically intended to protect people from the federal government (extended to states with the 14th)
1st amendment
freedom of religion, freedom of speech (or press), freedom of assembly, and freedom to petition the government
Establishment clause
Limits the federal government from creating a national religion (and from preferring one religion over others)
Free exercise clause
Every person has a right to choose which religion to practice, or if they want to practice religion at all. However, no person’s religious beliefs can take away others’ rights.
Engel v. Vitale
The supreme court ruled that leading a nondenominational prayer at school violated the establishment clause. This set a precedent for a different interpretation of the clause: coercion was not required to show violations of freedom of religion.
Wisconsin v Yoder
The supreme court ruled that it was unconstitutional to require school attendance past 8th grade because some Amish communities wanted to withhold their children from further schooling, so forcing them into high school would violate their freedom of religion.
Citizens United v. FEC
Citizens United sought to prevent the application of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) to their film about why Hilary Clinton would be a bad president. The Supreme Court ruled that under the First Amendment, corporate funding of political material cannot be limited. Protected the “free speech” right of corporations and unions.
What types of speech are generally protected?
pure speech
speech with some kind of action
political speech
symbolic speech
Tinker v. Des Moines
Students were suspended for wearing black armbands in protest of the Vietnam War. Students sued the school district for violating their right of expression. The Supreme court ruled that students do not lose their rights to expression when they step on campus. The only time schools can suppress speech is if they can prove it will “materially and substantially interfere” with the educational process.
What types of speech are generally not protected?
sedition
obscenity
defamation
false advertising
fighting words
intentionally creating panic
Obscenity test
“Would the average person applying contemporary community standards find this material unwholesome?”
This is very subjective, but can be used to determine if something is “obscene” and therefore not protected by the first amendment
Schenck v. US
Charles Schenck was arrested for violating the Espionage Act after distributing leaflets that opposed the draft and encouraged people to protest it. The Supreme Court ruled that the Espionage Act was not a violation of the First Amendment so Schenck was rightfully arrested. Believed that Congress had the power to limit “Clear and present danger” speech, especially in wartime.
New York Times v. US
The supreme court ruled that it was unconstitutional for the Nixon administration to withhold the “Pentagon Papers” (contained info about U.S. conduct in Vietnam). They did not have the power of prior restraint because publishing the papers wouldn’t create an immediate and literal threat to the nation.
Freedom of assembly
- literal right to assemble in a group
- right to associate with others sharing a common interest
As long as it is PEACEFUL
Freedom of Petition
The freedom to send letters, emails, phone calls and otherwise communicate with your government about your interests.
