Virginia Repeals Outdated Ban on “Profane Swearing”

The Virginia code dates back to George Washington’s 1776 “Order Against Profanity” which was used to keep soldiers from engaging in “the foolish and wicked practice of profane cursing and swearing.”

Punished for Shouting a Racial Epithet, Students Take UConn to Court

Neither Mucaj nor Karal directed the epithet toward anybody in particular, but uttered it out loud as part of a juvenile game that tested the other’s willingness to shout obscenities. Now, they say the university is using a vague policy to punish them for speech that, while offensive, is constitutionally protected.

Police Arrest Two Students at the University of Connecticut for Using a Racial Slur

While the boys’ language was undoubtedly offensive, civil liberties groups say the statute used to arrest them is unconstitutional on First Amendment grounds. 

Students at Georgia Southern University Burn Book By Latina Author

After disagreeing with the way Jennine Capó Crucet’s novel, “Make Your Home Among Strangers,” presented white privilege, a group of students at Georgia Southern University decided to burn her book. The incident serves as an interesting example of a form of expression that is at once protected speech—symbolic speech—and a symbol of censorship.

Tech Executive Severs Ties With Extremist Site Linked to El Paso Shooting

Matthew Prince, the chief executive of the San Francisco cyber security company, Cloudflare, has cut ties with 8chan, the anonymous message board where the El Paso killer posted his manifesto. […]

Death Sentence of White Supremacist Overturned on First Amendment Grounds

The California Supreme Court unanimously overturned the death sentence of a white supremacist after finding that the prosecution erred by asking the jury to consider his racist beliefs when deciding […]

Deep Dive: The Nicholas Sandmann Defamation Lawsuits

This deep dive includes information about the defamation suits stemming from a viral encounter between a group of high school boys and a Native American activist. Students can use it to understand such as protected opinion, public figure doctrine, and other First Amendment concepts.

Appeals Court Rules that University Violated Satirical Publications’ First Amendment Rights

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit overturned a lower court’s ruling that had dismissed a lawsuit brought by a student publication against the University of California, San […]