NIFLA v. Becerra and Speech Compulsions
Today's Supreme Court decision adds to the law -- and the uncertainty -- about when the First Amendment bans the government from requiring speech.
Free Speech
Will the ACLU Defend Controversial Speech? Ira Glasser, Wendy Kaminer, Nadine Strossen React to the Memo
President David Cole says guidelines "are explicitly designed to help affiliates and national staff think through various factors in case selection decisions."
Wendy Kaminer Replies on the ACLU and Free Speech
David Cole and Nadine Strossen had responded to Kaminer's op-ed on this; Kaminer responds in turn.
After Gay Wedding Cake Ruling, Supreme Court Punts Floral Arrangements Case
Washington State told to revisit ruling against Arlene's Flowers.
ACLU's David Cole Responds About ACLU and the Freedom of Speech [UPDATED with comments from former ACLU leaders Nadine Strossen and Ira Glasser] [FURTHER UPDATED with link to Kaminer's reply]
Is the ACLU becoming less committed to protecting free speech, especially speech that some view as "imped[ing] progress toward equality"?
Leaked Internal Memo Reveals the ACLU Is Wavering on Free Speech
"Our defense of speech may have a greater or lesser harmful impact on the equality and justice work to which we are also committed."
This Libertarian Community Organizer Wants To 'Free the People': Podcast
Matt Kibbe explains why "beer is freedom," and talks about his new documentary series with Rep. Thomas Massie, Off the Grid.
N.Y. Court Rejects Libel Lawsuit Based on Lawyer's Post on Harvard Law School's SHARIAsource Blog
It all began with a jurisdictional dispute over an Egyptian divorce proceeding and a New York divorce proceeding.
The Southern Poverty Law Center's Apology to Maajid Nawaz Is Bad News for Free Speech
Frivolous defamation lawsuits undermine the First Amendment.
The Year of the Punt, or At Least of the Bunt
Very narrow decisions -- or decisions not to decide -- in some more of the Supreme Court's most watched cases.
Australian Politician and Trans Activist Bridget Clinch Files "Gender Identity Vilification" Complaint Against Critic
Clinch seeks "an apology," "an undertaking from you not to post anti-trans or vilifying posts in future, and to remove those that are currently on your public Facebook profile," "a further undertaking from you to remove any anti trans and vilifying posts made by other people from your public profile," and "for you to participate in training about vilification, and trans' issues."
SCOTUS Rules 7-2 Against State Law Banning 'Political' Attire at Polling Places
A big win for First Amendment advocates in Minnesota Voters Alliance v. Mansky.
Ban on "Political" Clothing in Polling Places Is Unconstitutionally "Unreasonable"
But a more precise ban on clothing in polling places (which the Court treats as "nonpublic fora") that mentions candidates, parties, or ballot measures may be constitutional.
Victory in Lawsuit Over Colorado's System of Private Enforcement of Campaign Finance Law
Federal Judge Raymond Moore applies strict scrutiny to a system with the power to restrict political speech and finds it unreasonable to outsource that power to anyone and everyone.
Katherine Mangu-Ward and I Podcasting About Crime-Facilitating Speech
My first foray into podcasting here at Reason, a discussion with Reason editor Katherine Mangu-Ward.
When Does Speech About Crimes Become a Crime?: Podcast
A conversation with Eugene Volokh about what's legal to publish and why-plus doxxing, lock picking, source protection, and more.
University of Michigan Realizes Facts Don't Care About Your Feelings, Changes Speech Policy
A day after DOJ joined free speech lawsuit, UM agreed to change policy that said "the most important indication of bias is your own feelings."
Department of Justice Backs Free Speech Lawsuit Against University of Michigan Bias Response Team
"The United States has a significant interest in the vigilant protection of constitutional freedoms in institutions of higher learning."
N.Y. Set to Criminalize Much "Verbal" "Abuse" of Under-18-Year-Olds Online
The N.Y. Senate just unanimously passed a bill that would do that.
16-Year-Old Distributed Child Pornography -- by Sending Sex Tape of Herself to Friends
So holds the Maryland Court of Special Appeals, affirming a juvenile court finding of responsibility.
You Don't Need a Local Lawyer to Get a Case Unsealed
Each one of us has the right to access court records, so we can just sue pro se (though it helps to know the legal rules).
"What a Company Decides to Put on Their Vehicle Is a Matter of Free Speech and the Market"
A tiny free speech victory.
Telling Trump to Stop Blocking Critics on Twitter Doesn't Affect the Platform's Rules
The First Amendment constrains speech regulation by the government, not by private parties.
Sealed Case with Sealed Emergency Speech-Restrictive Injunction
How much do you trust judges to make such decisions without public scrutiny?
Criminal Libel Laws Are Constitutional If They're Limited to Deliberate Lies
There's a New Hampshire prosecution for criminal libel of a police chief -- and it may well be legally viable, at least if the defendant's statement is seen as a knowingly false factual claim. [UPDATE, June 8, 2018: Charges have now been dropped.]
SCOTUS May Yet Approve Gay Wedding Cake Demands
Despite its ruling in favor of a Colorado baker, the Court remains hostile to religious exemptions from anti-discrimination laws.
President Trump Apparently Unblocking Twitter Critics, Even While Appealing the Decision
The court decision was just a declaratory judgment, and thus not strictly legally binding.
First Amendment and Off-the-Job Political Speech Criticizing Black Lives Matter Movement and "Thugs"
An interesting opinion from three Georgia Supreme Court Justices.
After Stanford's Niall Ferguson Controversy, Free Speech Conservatives Need to Practice What They Preach
"Slowly, we will continue to crush the Left's will to resist, as they will crack under pressure."
Candidate for Oklahoma Legislature Sues Over Sealed Mystery Libel
A libel lawsuit in which the alleged libel is sealed is like Hamlet without the Prince -- or maybe like Othello with Iago's slanders redacted.
What Does the Masterpiece Cakeshop Decision Say About the Free Speech Claim?
Four Justices opined on this issue, with Justices Thomas and Gorsuch saying that requiring bakers to make cakes for same-sex weddings is an unconstitutional speech compulsion, and Justices Ginsburg and Sotomayor saying the opposite.
Supreme Court Rules for Baker in Gay Wedding Cake Case But Carefully Avoids Central Debate
This 7-2 ruling is more about Colorado's biased enforcement of discrimination law than freedom of expression.
Chelsea Manning Loses Wikileaks First Amendment Appeal
"[A] soldier who willfully communicates information relating to the national defense 'is not entitled to invoke the First Amendment as a shield to immunize his act of thievery.'"
Minister Has Sex with Married Parishioner -- Can Church Be Liable for Saying the Parishioner Committed Adultery?
No, says the Iowa Supreme Court, rejecting the claim that such statements (labeled "counterculture practices" by the plaintiffs) were libelous or negligent.
Samantha Bee Apologizes for Insulting Ivanka Trump After Right and Left Play 'We're Offended' Tit-for-Tat
Conservatives want to hold the left to the Roseanne standard.
How the Right Abandoned Free Speech in Europe
The center-right Danish government, whose members defended the Mohammed cartoons, has passed more laws restricting free speech than any government since World War II, says free-speech podcaster Jacob Mchangama.
Liberty Comes to Liberty High School -- "Trump Border Wall" T-Shirt Allowed
But it took a federal court order.
YouTube Won't Host Our Homemade Gun Video. So We Posted It on PornHub Instead.
Our video is awesome. But nothing in the First Amendment says YouTube has to run it.
When You're Done Reading This Issue of Reason, You Might Want to Burn It
We offer how-tos, personal stories, and guides for all kinds of activities that can and do happen right at the borders of legally permissible behavior.
U.K. Arrests Anti-Muslim Activist Tommy Robinson for Livestreaming Outside a Trial
The very fact that Robinson got 13 months in jail was also initially illegal to report.
Roseanne's Racist Tweet Leads Almost Immediately to Show's Cancellation
The show navigated a fascinating complicated world of ideological diversity. Its star was not so adept.
Why Can't Anyone Get Their Immigration Facts Straight?: Podcast
The president and his detractors both bungle scare stories in the outrage-politics contest that passes for our immigration policy debate.
At University of Virginia the White Supremacists Have Already Won
College limits protest, suppressing everybody's free expression.
Why Judy Gold Doesn't Play Colleges: 'You Don't Tell a Comic What Topics They Can Discuss on Stage'
A new Vice feature by Michael Moynihan highlights not just disillusioned comics but campus bookers ready to "pull the microphone" from performers who use language deemed intolerant.
4 Tips for Politicians With Social Media Accounts Who Don't Want to Be Sued
The ruling against Donald Trump's blocking of Twitter critics provides guidelines for staying on the right side of the First Amendment.
