first amendment
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Supreme Court Backs BLM Activist DeRay Mckesson in Fight Against Lawsuit Filed by Cop Injured During Protest
Once upon a time, in 2016, a cop got hit in the face with a rock during a Black Lives Matter protest in Baton Rouge, La., and decided that one of the leaders of said protest, DeRay Mckesson, was responsible. In 2017, a federal judge decided that’s not how any of this works and dismissed…
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New Jersey Mayor Tried to Charge Teenage Activist $2,500 for Police Overtime After She Planned a Black Lives Matter Protest
A New Jersey mayor has rescinded a bill he sent to an 18-year-old activist for $2,500 in alleged police overtime charges after she organized a fair housing protest earlier this summer. Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac, a Republican (surprise!), took back the bill this past Saturday but has not offered an apology to activist Emily…
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Federal Judge Reneges on Opinion in Deray Mckesson Case, Takes a Stand for First Amendment Right to Protest
You almost never hear a judge say “my bad,” but that is exactly what Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Don Willett did this week, reversing his opinion in a First Amendment case legal experts say could chill the right to protest. The case involves activist Deray Mckesson, who was sued by a Baton Rouge,…
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Ava DuVernay and Netflix Formally Respond to When They See Us Lawsuit, Claim Dialogue Is Protected Under First Amendment
Netflix and When They See Us writer-director Ava DuVernay are fighting back on a lawsuit filed against them and the figurative punches are formal. As The Root reported in October, police interrogation firm John E. Reid and Associates filed a lawsuit against DuVernay and the production company/streaming platform in regard to the hit miniseries, claiming…
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The Supreme Court's Latest Ruling Makes It Easier for Cops to Arrest Black Lives Matter Protesters
It was a ruling that failed to register widely in terms of national news, but could have potentially devastating effects for protesters around the country—and anyone tasked with keeping police officers accountable. On May 28, the Supreme Court made it more difficult for people who say they were arrested for exercising their free speech rights…
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An Arizona Prisoner Was Sent a Book Critical of the Criminal Justice System. Now, the State Has Banned It
In one of the most memorable passages of his seminal autobiography, civil rights leader Malcolm X made explicit the impact his in-prison education had on him. Arrested on charges of larceny and sentenced to 10 years in prison, Malcolm read voraciously. “I knew right there in prison that reading had changed forever the course of…
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Media on Its Mind: Georgia Bill Would Force Reporters to Turn Over Photos, Audio and Video if Asked
The Constitution seems to have weighed heavily on the minds of Georgia lawmakers over the past week. First, lawmakers went after the 14th Amendment by effectively outlawing abortion in the state with their “heartbeat” bill. Now, they seem focused on the First Amendment. Georgia House Bill 734, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Andy Welch, would…
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Man Gets $80,000 Settlement For ‘Laughing While Black’
People are out here fighting for our right to talk cash shit, and I salute. According to a news release from Chandra Law, Robert Spencer filed a civil rights lawsuit after he was arrested in July 2017. Officers in the recorded confrontation accused Spencer of threatening them, but all he actually did was clown them…
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4 Out of 5 Kennesaw State University Cheerleaders Who Protested During National Anthem Cut From 2018 Squad
When Kennesaw State University’s football team takes the field on Thursday, a slew of new faces will comprise the school’s cheerleading squad. That’s because four out of the five KSU cheerleaders who took a knee during the national anthem last year as part of a nationwide movement to draw attention to police brutality didn’t make…
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It Is Illegal for Donald Trump to Block You on Twitter Just Because He Is a Big Baby Who Can’t Take Criticism
A federal judge in New York City ruled Wednesday that the ability to view and engage with Donald Trump on his personal Twitter account is part of our constitutional First Amendment rights, and his blocking people simply because he doesn’t like their criticisms of him is a violation of those rights. Since his election, Trump…