Three States Pass Laws That Enhance Punishments for Fossil Fuel Protests

This month, legislators in Kentucky, South Dakota, West Virginia have worked to pass new laws that target individuals protesting fossil fuel companies. Some environmentalists believe legislators took advantage of the fact that national attention was focused on the coronavirus, to pass controversial legislation.

Teacher Takes A Knee During Championship College Football Game

“Not everybody is given the opportunity to have a voice, and I can take a small moment, a respectful moment of protest, and exercise my First Amendment rights, and stand up for my students and for vulnerable adults and for people who are not treated in the way that they should be.”

Columbia University Student Files Complaint with Department of Education, Alleging Anti-Semitism

Invoking President Donald Trump’s recent executive order targeting anti-Israel sentiment on college campuses, the complaint accuses the Columbia administration of failing to address discrimination against Jewish students on its campus.

Judge Revises Opinion in Lawsuit Against Black Lives Matter Activist

While Judge Willet had originally agreed with the majority opinion—that Mckesson could be held liable for injuries caused by a rogue protester—his new opinion reveals a rare judicial change of mind.

ACLU Urges Supreme Court to Overturn a Ruling Against DeRay Mckesson

Earlier this year, the Fifth Circuit ruled that Mckesson could be held liable for injuries he did not immediately cause or encourage. Now, the ACLU is asking the Supreme Court in a petition to overturn the ruling or else risk a widespread chilling effect on protest.

How an Email to Students about a College Football Game Turned into a Free Speech Controversy

“The issue wasn’t that the SGA email said ‘Protest Trump and you’ll be kicked out'," a student at the University of Alabama said. "The issue was that the timing was suspect, and seemed intended to have a chilling effect on students who may have been planning on booing or protesting."

Black Lives Matter Leader May Face Trial for Actions of Anonymous Protester

A prominent Black Lives Matter activist, DeRay Mckesson, might go on trial for injuries sustained by a police officer during a protest in Baton Rouge, Louisiana even though he wasn’t […]

Federal Judge Throws Out Charges Against White Supremacist Citing Free Speech Violations

A federal judge in Los Angeles threw out charges against three alleged white supremacists, saying that the First Amendment protected their speech. Robert Rundo, Robert Boman, and Aaron Eason, members of the Rise Above Movement (RAM), had been charged with conspiracy to commit rioting under the Anti Riot Act of 1968.  The trio allegedly used the Internet to coordinate combat training, travel to protests, and attacks on protestors at three gatherings in California. District Court Judge Carmac J. Carney ruled that the federal Anti Riot Act, which was enacted during the civil rights movement and the Vietnam War, was too broad in regulating free speech.