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    A recent wave of anti-Islam protests and rioting has taken place in European countries such as Sweden and Norway. One example of these demonstrations took place in Malmo, Sweden where a Quran was burned by a group of protesters. This led to increased police presence to try and de-escalate the situation.  However, despite all of the anti-muslim actions, the Prime Minister of Norway defended the protests as it was their right to free speech. This led to a greater discussion about freedom of speech and how and why it allows hurtful/hate speech to continue. This issue falls squarely in place with two of the eight values of free expression: stable change and the promotion of tolerance. Stable change value of the free expression theory claims that if you allow people to “vent” or speak their opinions, without the government trying to suppress it, there will be less violence. Also, some claim that this allows the government to even better track groups such as the anti-muslim movement. Had the government directly stepped in to put down the anti-muslim protests, there would have been violence in which people would have gotten seriously hurt. The anger from the right-wing group would have further exasperated, leading to even more violence. This then works its way into the value of promoting tolerance by the government letting them pursue their speech, no matter how “hurtful” or immoral it may be, so that it will not turn into something bigger or more violent. In this way, the government gets out of the way so that society can then, by its own means, deal with this social issue in a productive way. This value teaches that the protection of unpopular speech serves to help us as a society learn to grow more tolerant of various political and moral views. Through this, we create societal norms and standards for what is socially acceptable and unacceptable behavior or speech. The government needs to get out of the way in order for society to rule itself. This a vital part of the relationship between the federal powers and the public powers that must be kept in order to maintain a relatively stable environment. 

Link:https://www.euronews.com/2020/09/04/anti-islam-protests-in-sweden-and-norway-spark-debate-on-free-speech

Flag Burning in Portland Black Lives Matter Protest

On August 2, members of the Black Lives Matter Protest burned the American flag. Police soon arrived to control the ever-escalating situation. This story and its image of the burning flag quickly made national news and once again asked the question of whether or not the burning of the American flag was or was not protected by the First Amendment. Indeed, the First Amendment does protect such action as flag burning because it is seen as symbolic speech. The First Amendment's freedom of speech clause protects any and all speech as long as the speech does not DIRECTLY call for or incite violence. That means that even offensive speech is protected. Unpopular or possibly offensive speech is protected so that the general public has the personal freedom to determine which speech is or is not socially correct or acceptable. 

Also, there is already a precedent set for an action such as flag burning in the cases of Texas v. Johnson (1989) and United States v. Eichman (1990).  In both cases, the Supreme Court upheld the right to burn flags as they saw it as a version of symbolic speech. 

link: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/black-lives-matter-protests-portland-protesters-burn-us-flags-police-arrive/videoshow/77310753.cms

US Supreme Court

 INTRODUCTION

Made up of nine justices, the Supreme Court is the highest ruling federal court in the entire country that has the distinct power to check the constitutionality of the actions made by both the executive branch and legislative branch of the government. 

TIMELINE

1789- The Supreme Court is established by Article Three of the US Constitution.

1789- The Judiciary Act is signed into law by President George Washington. This stated that the Supreme Court would be made up of six justices on life terms until they either chose to retire or died. 

February 2, 1790- First Assemble- a meeting made to develop structural procedures for the Court to go by. 

August 3, 1791- The Supreme Court's first decision involving the case West v. Barnes.

NOMINATION PROCESS

Nominated by the US president, the judge then needs to be confirmed by the US Senate in order to become a Supreme Court Justice. This is part of the government's system of checks and balances. 

THE FIRST US SUPREME COURT

The first Supreme Court consisted of Chief Justice John Jay, John Rutledge, William Cushing, John Blair, Robert Harrison, and James Wilson. 

1869- Congress set the Supreme Court to have nine justices.

Current Supreme Court Justices: Chief Justice John Roberts Jr, Anthony Kennedy, Clarence Thomas Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayer, Elena Kagan, and Neil Gorsuch. 

HONORED SUPREME COURT JUSTICES:

Thurgood Marshall

• John Marshall- Helped to establish the role between the judicial branch and the other two branches of the government.
• Charles Evans Hughes-Wrote influential opinions concerning the freedom of the press and the freedom of speech.
• Earl Warren- Helped to end segregation and racial divides such as abolishing the prohibition of interracial marriage.
• William Howard Taft- The first to ever be a chief justice and then a president.
• Thurgood Marshall- The first black man to serve on the Supreme Court.
• Sandra Day O'Connor- The first ever female to serve on the Supreme Court.
• Sonia Sotomayor- The first ever Latina to serve on the Supreme Court.

IMPORTANT CASES

Dred Scott

• 1857 (Dred Scott v. Sandford) - The Supreme Court denied all residency to African American slaves.
• 1896 (Plessy v. Ferguson)- The Supreme Court upheld state segregation.
• 1944 (Korematsu v. United States) - The Supreme Court allowed for the continued use of WWII internment camps for Japanese Americans.
• 1961 (Mapp v. Ohio) - The Supreme Court state that evidence gathered illegally can not be used in criminal cases.
• 2015 (Obergefell v. Hodges) - The Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in the entire country.

 

Top 5 News Sources

1) Fox News
2)ABC
3)H3H3 Podcast
4)BBC
5)Joe Rogan Podcast

1) I use Fox News the most because it is honestly what my own family and roommates watch the most of when I am around them. It is constantly around me, forcing me to look for it most often when I need to hear the latest news or opinions about current events in the country.


2) I like to use ABC because they are probably the most "neutral" when it comes to reporting many political issues. They are also known to do very in-depth analyses of current event and perform many notable news specials to present many much needed information.

3) The H3H3  Podcast is another news source I like to use since it looks to combine humor with honest discussion surrounding current events. Everyone is honest with their own bias and looks to examine certain issues with an "every man" sensibility.


4) I enjoy the BBC since it provides a unique, foreign perspective on world issues that many times us Americans simply do not get the chance many times to see. It is fascinating to see how another country and/or culture may perceive a situation entirely different or similar to that of our own.


5) The Joe Rogan Podcast provides brutally honest opinions about current events along with incredible entertainment value due to its many colorful cast of guests. No voice or political opinion is the same from week to week. One week, Bernie Sanders may be interviewed. The next, Ben Shapiro may be interviewed. Every possible voice gets heard.