A History of the Bill of Rights "[A] bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth, general or particular, and what no just government should refuse." --- Thomas Jefferson December 20, 1787 U.S. Constitution “In the summer of 1787, delegates from the 13 states convened in Philadelphia and drafted a remarkable blueprint for self-government -- the Constitution of the United States. The first draft set up a system of checks and balances that included a strong executive branch, a representative legislature and a federal judiciary. The Constitution was remarkable, but deeply flawed. For one thing, it did not include a specific declaration - or bill - of individual rights. It specified what the government could do but did not say what it could not do. The absence of a "bill of rights" turned out to be an obstacle to the Constitution's ratification by the states. It would take four more years of intense debate before the new government's form would be resolved. The American people wanted strong guarantees that the new government would not trample upon their newly won freedoms of speech, press and religion, nor upon their right to be free from warrantless searches and seizures. So, the Constitution's framers heeded Thomas Jefferson who argued: "A bill of rights is what the people are entitled to against every government on earth, general or particular, and what no just government should refuse, or rest on inference." The American Bill of Rights, inspired by Jefferson and drafted by James Madison, was adopted, and in 1791 the Constitution's first ten amendments became the law of the land."

Bill of Rights “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 a redress of grievances.” U.S. Constitution First Amendment

cen-sor-ship n. 1 the act, process, or policy of censoring. Source: Webster’s II New Riverside University Dictionary cen-sor n. 1. an official who examines books, plays, news reports, motion pictures, radio programs, etc., for the purpose of suppressing parts deemed objectionable on moral, political, military, or other grounds. 2. any person who supervises the manners or morality of others. Source: The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged Edition

“If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the Government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.” - U.S. Supreme Court Justice William Brennan

“The church, known for demonstrating at military funerals and burning American flags, made their rounds in Skokie [Illinois] earlier today. When asked to convey the church's message in one sentence, [a WBC member] said, "Obey God or Destruction." WBC preaches a zero-tolerance policy for those who disagree with its fundamentalist doctrine.” Source: Westboro Baptist Church

Limitations to Free Speech? - Incite violence or criminal actions -National security -Threats/personal harm -Libel & slander -Obscene material

What is obscene and therefore not protected by the First Amendment? The Miller test was developed in the 1973 case Miller v. California. To be considered obscene, all three conditions must be met: 1) Whether "the average person, applying contemporary community standards", would find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the *prurient interest, 2) Whether the work depicts/describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct specifically defined by applicable state law, 3) Whether the work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value.” * pru-ri-ent – adj. 1) obsessively interested in sexual matters

Censorship vs. Selection “[Censorship is] the removal, suppression, or restricted circulation of literary, artistic, or educational materials -- of images, ideas, and information -- on the grounds that these are morally or otherwise objectionable in light of standards applied by the censor." “Censorship rests on an exclusion of materials, while selection involves an inclusion of materials "carried out by trained professionals, familiar with the wide variety of available choices and guided by a clear grasp of the educational purposes to be fulfilled.“ Source:

Library Bill of Rights The American Library Association affirms that all libraries are forums for information and ideas, and that the following basic policies should guide their services. I. Books and other library resources should be provided for the interest, information, and enlightenment of all people of the community the library serves. Materials should not be excluded because of the origin, background, or views of those contributing to their creation. II. Libraries should provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues. Materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval. III. Libraries should challenge censorship in the fulfillment of their responsibility to provide information and enlightenment. IV. Libraries should cooperate with all persons and groups concerned with resisting abridgment of free expression and free access to ideas. V. A person’s right to use a library should not be denied or abridged because of origin, age, background, or views. VI. Libraries which make exhibit spaces and meeting rooms available to the public they serve should make such facilities available on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups requesting their use. - American Library Association

California v. Entertainment Software Association Violent Video Games

What the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA) Requires Schools and libraries receiving government funding must have an Internet safety policy that includes technology protection measures. The protection measures must block or filter Internet access to pictures that are: (a) obscene; (b) child pornography; or (c) harmful to minors (for computers that are accessed by minors).

Important US Supreme Court Cases Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier Censoring Student Journalists Debs v. United States Joseph Burstyn, Inc. v. Wilson Censoring motion pictures Free speech and protesting the Draft Tinker v. Des Moines Independent School District Student protests Miller v. California What is obscene? Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association Violent video games and minors

Free Speech Advocacy American Library Association American Civil Liberties Union Electronic Frontier Foundation First Amendment Center First Amendment Coalition Freedom Forum People for the American Way

Sources for this presentation rights-brief-history Dnihznanosti/tabid/1290/Default.aspx bCat=Extremism_in_America&xpicked=3&item=WBC LimitsFreedomSpeech.htm