At Columbia, Yale, University of Southern California, University of Texas, University of California Los Angeles, and elsewhere one has seen tent city campus landscapes, and students gathered for delivery of impassioned chants before cameras, sitting quietly with protest signs against walkways, or alternating turns to speak publicly to gathered crowds. Many times, however, news cameras
This article was originally published in July 2016. The information has been reviewed and is up-to-date as of February 2024.
Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism are typically cited as the major religions of the world, although there are many others that have tens of millions of adherents or more. The United States has no
In a much-publicized congressional hearing on December 5, 2023, the presidents of Harvard, MIT, and the University of Pennsylvania faced pointed questions by the House Education and Workforce Committee regarding antisemitism on college campuses. Several exchanges—and public debate thereafter—focused on whether certain violent or politically-charged speech would violate the universities’ Code of Conduct, particularly the
With the approaching election year, we can anticipate a high level of political activity from the public to support their views of what should be the country’s future. No doubt, at times this political activity will encroach on the workplace, and for public agency employers, this can create unique problems. State statutes and agency rules
Social media sites have become the new “public square” where individuals share opinions and information about all types of political and societal events. Public sector employees, as much as anyone else, use social media to post viewpoints and to participate in public debate. Problems arise, however, when a public employee posts harsh, derogatory, defamatory, or
A recent case has made clear that a government agency’s ceasing doing business with a company based on the viewpoints of the company’s owners can lead to First Amendment liability for the agency. Earlier this year, in Riley’s American Heritage Farms v. Elsasser, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (the
When does a City create a public forum for speech under the First Amendment? When can a City restrict which flags fly on a City flagpoles? When can a City limit religious speech under the First Amendment? The United States Supreme Court addressed these questions in its unanimous decision in Shurtleff v. City of Boston
In June 2021, the Supreme Court declined an invitation to overturn Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith, its seminal 1990 case holding that a facially neutral and generally applicable law survives a challenge under the Free Exercise Clause if it is rationally related to a legitimate government interest. However, the
This post appeared in April 2018. It has been reviewed and is up to date.
Social media and the First Amendment is a fascinating and quickly-developing area of the law. All types of business organizations have a social media presence, for example, a Twitter page or Facebook account, and often on their own websites
