I’ve graded all reading responses that were submitted on time. Please take a look at my feedback and let me know if you have any questions.
Here’s what we’re up to this week:
This week’s readings
We the People, pp. 96-104
*Texas v. Johnson (1989) (excerpt)
This week we’re discussing civil liberties, focusing on the First Amendment to the Constitution, which provides for religion and speech protections.
As you’ll read in We the People, it took a while for the Supreme Court to finally incorporate the speech protections outlined in the First Amendment — meaning, bar the individual states from restricting citizen speech. But even with incorporation, the Supreme Court was initially willing to allow the federal government to silence citizen speech that it deemed dangerous to national security.
After completing the readings in our textbook, you should also be ready to discuss the following questions:
Broadly, how would you define civil liberties? Where do they appear in the Constitution?
What is incorporation, and why is it important? How does the Fourteenth Amendment play a pivotal role in the process of incorporation
Where in the Bill of Rights does the establishment clause appear? What does it mean? What does it prohibit government from doing? Has it always been easy for the Supreme Court to interpret the establishment clause? Why or why not?
Where in the Bill of Rights does the free exercise clause appear? What does it mean? What does it prohibit government from doing? Has it always been easy for the Supreme Court to interpret the free exercise clause? Why or why not?
Where in the Bill of Rights does freedom of speech appear? What does it mean, and why, why is it an important democratic value? How does government suppression of speech harm a democracy?
In the Supreme Court’s 1989 Texas v. Johnson opinion, Justice Brennan wrote:
“The Government may not prohibit the verbal or nonverbal expression of an idea merely because society finds the idea offensive or disagreeable, even where our flag is involved.” Using evidence from the excerpt, explain the Court’s reasoning in siding with the speaker in this case, Johnson.
What was the case about? What was the Supreme Court saying about the meaning of the First Amendment and the limits its places on government regulation of speech?
This week’s assignment
News Journal #4 due Friday by 11:59 pm; comments due Sunday by 11:59 pm
PICK ANY RECENT NEWS ARTICLE AND RELATE IT TO THE ABOVE READING EXAMPLE PROVIDED.
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