Civil Liberties:
First Amendment Freedoms
Civics
Class Notes
First Amendment
“Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of
religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the
freedom of speech, or of the
press; or the right of the people
peaceably to assemble, and to
petition the Government for the
redress of grievances.”
What does the phrase
common good mean to you?
Civil Liberties and Common Good
• A public demonstration blocks traffic for
hours.
• A neighbor blares her stereo in the middle
of the night.
• The government halts publication of warrelated information.
What do you think is more
important—protecting individual
rights or protecting the common
good?
Individual freedoms of religion,
speech, press, and assembly
are not absolute. They can be
restricted when they:
1.Infringe upon the rights of
others,
2. Violate laws, or
3. Threaten safety.
Does the First Amendment
mean anyone can say anything
at any time?
No. The Supreme Court has
rejected an interpretation of
speech without limits.
Simple rules for determining when
speech should be limited:
1. Clear and Present Danger
– Statements that are uttered to provoke violence
or incited illegal action.
2. Fighting Words
– Slander and Libel
3. National Security conflict
– Time, place, manner
4. Obscenity
– Three-part “Miller test”
Miller Test
• Three questions must receive affirmative
responses for material to be considered
“obscene” (versus “indecent”):
1. Would the average person, applying the
contemporary community standards, viewing the
work as a whole, find the work appeals to the
prurient interest?
2. Does the work depict or describe sexual conduct
in a patently offensive way?
3. Does the work taken as a whole lack serious
literary, artistic, political, or scientific value?
Explain what this statement
means:
Rights are relative, not absolute.
The following statements either
describe restrictions on or
support for individual freedoms.
Read the statements and decide
whether you think each
statement is True or False.
True or False (Why?)
• Example: Public officials may prevent the
publication of articles insulting to them.
• FALSE: Example, Pentagon Papers and
President Nixon.
True or False (Why?)
• Worshipers may use poisonous snakes in
religious rituals.
• TRUE: Snake handling is a part of some
religious practices.
True or False (Why?)
• Religious groups do not have to salute the
flag.
• TRUE: “If there is any fixed star in our
constitutional constellation, it is that no
official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall
be orthodox in politics, nationalism, religion,
or other matters of opinion or force citizens to
confess by words or act their faith therein.”
– West Virginia BOE v. Barnette, 1943
True or False (Why?)
• No internet site may knowingly transmit
indecent speech or images to any person
under age 18.
• TRUE: Communications Decency Act of
1996.
True or False (Why?)
• Animals may be sacrificed in church
services.
• TRUE: Some religious services include
ritual animal sacrifice.
True or False (Why?)
• A permit is required to hold a religious parade
on public property.
• TRUE (sometimes): Certain types of events
require permits. Generally, these events are:
– A march or parade that does not stay on the
sidewalk, and other events that require blocking
traffic or street closure
– A large rally requiring the use of sound amplifying
devices; or
– A rally at certain designated parks or plazas
True or False (Why?)
• Government has the right to prevent
publication of material that it says is
harmful to national security.
• TRUE (sort of): this issue is VERY murky
and is at the center of national debate
(Wikileaks, Edward Snowden).
True or False (Why?)
• Government can draft those who have
religious objections to military service.
• False: “Conscientious Observer” status.
True or False (Why?)
• Reporters are constitutionally protected
against having to reveal their sources
during a trial.
• FALSE (But, very murky): this issue is an
ongoing battle. The Supreme Court has
ruled there is no constitutional protection
for journalists’ sources.
True or False (Why?)
• Government officials may prohibit a group
with racist ideas from holding a
demonstration in public.
• False: ALL IDEAS have to be protected,
even the ones we might not agree with
(i.e. KKK marches).
True or False (Why?)
• It is legal to read aloud a prayer before
public high school graduation ceremonies.
• TRUE (sort of): Students NOT faculty
members my include prayers in their
remarks so long as the remarks are not
proselytizing.
True or False (Why?)
• It is legal to display a Christmas tree in a
government building.
• FALSE (ish): Religious symbols should be
excluded from public displays unless the
symbols are fully integrated into a clearly
secular message.
Civil Liberties in School
• The First Amendment guarantees our
right to free expression and free
association, which means that the
government does not have the right to
forbid us from saying what we like and
writing what we like; we can form clubs
and organizations, and take part in
demonstrations and rallies.
Civil Liberties in School
• Tinker v. Des Moines, 1969: the Supreme
Court found that students “do not shed
their constitutional rights to freedom of
speech or expression at the schoolhouse
gate.”
Civil Liberties in School
• Individuals can pray when and as they
choose in any place.
• You do NOT have to turn over your
passwords to social networking accounts.
• Your fourth amendment rights against
unreasonable searches and seizure do not
always apply in public schools (e.g.
random locker and backpack checks).
Civil Liberties in School
• You have a right to express your opinions as
long as you do so in a way that doesn't
"materially and substantially" disrupt classes
or other school activities. If you hold a protest
on the school steps and block the entrance to
the building, school officials can stop you.
They can probably also stop you from using
language that they think is "vulgar or
indecent," so watch out for the dirty words,
OK?
The Lemon Test
• Used to determine whether a State law
amounts to an “establishment” of religion.
• Three parts:
1. Does the law have a secular purpose? If not, it
violates the Establishment Clause.
2. Is the primary effect either to advance religion or
to inhibit religion? If so, it violates the
Establishment Clause.
3. Does the law foster an excessive governmental
entanglement with religion? If so, it violates the
Establishment Clause.
Explore the ACLU
https://www.aclu.org/