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Freedom of Speech?

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Freedom of Speech?
Randa Nakib
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Essay 1

Freedom Of Speech?

Living in America means that we as citizens of the country have many rights according to the laws stated in the United States Constitution, which stands for our principles and make up the rights that American 's deserve. One major freedom we have is stated in The First Amendment: "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." This amendment shows that our government should not be allowed to put limitations on the people 's right to express themselves through free speech and religion. We as citizens have the right to voice our opinions as long as we do not cause harm while doing so. This is a reason why many people from around the world choose to come to America, for their right to freedom. The first amendment should apply to everyone who lives in the United States, but in some cases it does not.
In a recent case, a teenage boy 's right to exercise his freedom of speech was challenged by his high school. He wore an "anti-gay" t-shirt to school on the day of, and also on the day after, the Gay-Straight Alliance group organized a "day of silence". The boy, Tyler Chase Harper, was asked to remove his t-shirt, which he handwrote on the front: "I will not accept what God has condemned," and "homosexuality is a sin", on the back (Soto). Because Harper refused to remove his t-shirt, he was sent to the office by his teacher and had to speak to the principal. He again refused to remove the shirt after meeting with the principal, which resulted in being detained in the front office all day. Also, the year before this, Poway High School had a problem with the "Day of Silence"; this led the students to react by getting into arguments and even some physical confrontations throughout the day.


Cited: California. The Ninth Circuit. United States Court of Appeals. Appeal for the United States District Court for the Southern District of California. 20 Apr. 2006. 15 Feb. 2008 <www.uscourts.gov>. "Constitutional Law-Freedom of Speech--Ninth Circuit Upholds Public School 's Prohibition of Anti-Gay T-Shirt 's." The Harvard Law Review 120 (2007): 1691-1698. 14 Feb. 2008 <http://search.ebscohost.com>. "Harper V. Poway Unified School District." National School Board Association. 15 Feb. 2008 <www.nsba.org>. Soto, Onell R. "Lawsuit Over Anti-Gay Shirt Can Proceed, Judge Decides." The San Diego Union-Tribune 06 Nov. 2004. 17 Feb. 2008 <www.signonsandiego.com>. Taylor, Kelley R. "Another Free-Speech Court Case Off T-Shirts." The Education Digest. Nov. 2006. 17 Feb. 2008 <www.eddigest.com>.
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