Amendment1Speech

Amendment 1: Freedom of Speech "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." Court case: Tinker vs. Des Moines School District Some students planned to wear black armbands to school to protest the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. The administrators heard of the protest and quickly pursued a no-armband rule (even though they allow students to wear other symbols around school). The students nonetheless wore the armbands to school ignoring the new rule. The school officials then suspended them for violating school policy. The students, thinking it wasn’t fair, sued, claimed they violation of their First Amendment rights. The issue was whether school officials can look-over non-violent student speech and not show that the speech will cause a material and substantial disruption of school and educational activities or interfer with the rights of others.

Why is this a problem? The students were suspended from school because they lacked in non-violent student speech without showing that the speech will cause a material and substantial disruption of school educational activities or collide with the rights of others. Students do not lose their constitutional rights at the schools door. It’s the school officials’ duty to provide a safe learning environment that balances with students’ free-expression rights. They must reasonably make sure that the student speech will not cause a substantial disruption or interfer with the rights of others. By a 7-2 vote, the Court held that school officials cannot censor student speech unless school officials reasonably forecast that the speech will cause a material and substantial disruption of school activities or collide with the rights of others. Mere apprehension of disturbance or an offense given is not enough.

It is important because... The reason why the 1st amendment to the freedom of speech is important is to protect there right to a citizens voice in defending there opinion and there thoughts and to protect your self in court.Whether the Supreme Court or any court may hear a case, it must strongly strike a balance between opposing interests. If an individual is accused of a crime, his or her interests are weighed and the balance of Justice, with the interest of the society as a court balance. While any case or controversy is to be judged on its merits, the scales are tilted heavily in the favor of individual expression in the freedom of speech