What is protected free speech (and what isn’t)?

Let’s talk about freedom of speech: After all, it’s our constitutional right to talk about what we want, but because the Constitution imposes very little. The limits of what we can say, people always say inaccuracies, including the First Amendment. It’s allowed, so let’s clarify some of it.

What is the First Amendment to the Constitution? What does it protect?

First, hThe First Amendment to the United States Constitution states: “Parliament must not enact laws that respect the establishment of religion or prohibit its free exercise, or renounce freedom of speech or press, or rally peacefully. And the right of those who plead with the government to correct their dissatisfaction. “

Cool, so what does it all do? average?? Professor Clay Calvert of the University of Florida analyzed it in a chat with Lifehacker, saying that most of us are familiar with the right to choose their religion and the right of the press to freely report on current events. explained. Peaceful rallies and complaints to the government are often overlooked.

Regarding the wording of the First Amendment, he added:The Supreme Court told us that Includes local, state, federal entities or civil servants. Therefore, it is not possible to enact a law that limits freedom of speech, but this is important. The First Amendment only protects us from censorship by government agencies or civil servants.

Specifically, which speech is protected?

You can worship as you like, write as you like, and say as you like. The government cannot punish or censor you. If you are a parent who wants to cause a little scene at a school board meeting, it is covered by your right to petition for correction of dissatisfaction. If you are a professional soccer player who wants to kneel in protest of police atrocities and systematic racism, it counts as a symbolic expression, And you are free to do it. If you’re a smartphone owner and want to confide some tweets about how much a representative on one or the other side of the aisle smokes, go ahead. Even if you insult government officials directly, they cannot penalize you.

In 1989, the Supreme Court even claimed that it was a constitutional right to burn the American flag five years after a man named Gregory Lee Johnson did it at the 1984 Republican National Convention. He was convicted of blasphemy for worshiped in violation of Texas criminal law, but when his proceedings were brought to the Supreme Court a few years later, they ruled in his favor, not Texas. ..

When is the speech no Are you protected?

Therefore, for clarity, government You can’t do anything to stop saying what you want, but private companies can. When Colin Kaepernick knelt down, the government couldn’t do anything, but the National Football League did. Officially, the NFL didn’t initially penalize Caper Nick, even when then-President Donald Trump asked the organization to punish other players who protested him, but he was in the national anthem. It is widely believed that the protest was made into a black ball, He then alleged that the team was colluding to keep him away from the league in the aftermath, and filed complaints that had been resolved since then. In 2018, league owners decided that players couldn’t kneel during the national anthem.

The NFL is not a government. You can make such a rule. In fact, private companies are not allowed or allowed what kind of speech they are allowed to use, publicly express, or otherwise contract with their products and services. You can intervene and create rules about what to do. You know where this is heading.

“The First Amendment to the United States Constitution only protects us from censorship by government agencies and civil servants. Most people do not recognize or understand that important fact. Twitter is a private entity. It is not a government agency. “ Culvert said.. “Therefore, Twitter is not subject to the First Amendment of the Constitution if you choose to dismiss an individual’s platform or delete tweets that violate our Terms of Service or Terms of Use. If you need to comply with the terms of use or terms of use specified by Twitter when you sign up to participate in, there will be much more contractual issues. If they violate, Twitter will take them. You can delete or delete tweets, in which case there are no issues or violations of the First Amendment. I think that’s really the biggest misconception people have. The private entity is the First Amendment. It means that it may be regulated by. ”

There are also some things that are not protected by the government. For example, child pornography is not protected by the First Amendment, nor is the speech essential to criminal activity protected. Direct threats are not protected. Obscenity is also unprotected, but many other changes have been made to allow content such as artistic nude photos and pornography to continue to be created. Culvert must be judged to be clearly offensive because obscene speech is unprotected, but if it can be shown to have literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. He said it was okay. Moreover, he said, it’s all based on modern community standards, and the definition of obscenity is constantly evolving.

Finally, keep in mind that you can say whatever you want and the government can’t stop you, but people can also react in the way they think it’s appropriate. If you say something offensive to a relative, that person can decide not to talk to you without violating your rights. If you slander your company in public, your boss can choose to fire you. Your First Amendment rights do not protect you from the personal consequences of exercising them.

Why is this important?

The First Amendment is very important. Culvert pointed out other countries, such as Russia and China, that limit the ability of those who criticize the government. In other countries, the impact can be serious, but here in the United States, you can post a nasty meme all day about Republican Senator Ted Cruz or Democratic President Joe Biden. Unless you threaten directly, you are allowed to do it. Trump, who is also a Republican, is currently absent, but if you post a meme about him, you may not see the meme because it was banned from Twitter and most social media sites in 2021. This is also not a free violation. Speech anyway.

Freedom of speech tends to be debated, but you may not realize that the then president’s deplatforming was not an attack on the First Amendment.

Billionaire Elon Musk recently acquired a 9.2% stake in Twitter and offered to buy it earlier this week. Filing“I invested in Twitter because I believe it could be a platform for free speech around the world. Freedom of speech is socially essential to a functioning democracy. But since I made my investment, I’ve now realized that the company doesn’t prosper or serve this social obligation in its current form. Twitter transforms as a private company. is needed.”

The debate over freedom of speech will continue to intensify, even though the First Amendment has become fairly clear about what it contains since 1971. Of course, you are free to participate in the discussion, but it is best to do it with the facts as a weapon. Also, the knowledge that private companies are not regulated by the First Amendment.