Category Archives: First Amendment

Waymore #39;s Blues by Dustin Owens The First Amendment
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By: Dustin Owens

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Waymore's Blues by Dustin Owens & The First Amendment - Video

The Three Wise Men are depicted on the nativity scene at Christ Church Cathedral on Monument Circle in Downtown Indianapolis. A similar Christian Nativity scene on the courthouse lawn in Brookville, Ind., has pitted town residents against a Wisconsin group dedicated to preserving the separation of church and state.(Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star file photo)

Every year for the past five decades, about a dozen Brookville residents build a Nativity scene outside the county courthouse.

They use donated materials and repaint the figurines using money from a donation jar. Shortly after Thanksgiving, volunteers put up the display on the courthouse lawn, and it stays there until early January.

Brookville resident Wayne Monroe came up with the idea 50 years ago. Everybody loves it, he said.

For them, it has become a tradition, a celebration of Christianity. Franklin County Commissioner Tom Wilson said erecting the Nativity scene is an expression of residents' constitutional rights of freedom of religion and speech.

Others disagree.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a Madison, Wisc.-based nonprofit, has been sending letters to the county commissioners since 2010, asking the county to take down the "unlawful" display from public property. A second letter, sent in December 2013, says the Nativity scene is a constitutional violation that shows that the government endorses one religion over another.

Allowing the display to be erected each year shows that the Franklin County Commissioners prefer "Christianity over all minority religion and non religion," said Sam Grover, staff attorney for the Freedom From Religion Foundation. "That's not appropriate."

The county commissioners ignored the letters. The volunteers continued putting up the display every year. Others advocated for keeping the town's tradition.

An online campaign website called "Save Brookville Indiana Courthouse Nativity Scene" that was started shortly after the foundation first contacted the county commissioners has gained more than 10,000 members. Supporters also have started a change.org petition to keep the display on the courthouse lawn on Main Street in Brookville, which is about 75 miles southeast of Indianapolis.

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First Amendment dispute pits nonprofit against Nativity display

GBS205 First Amendment Video
Andrew Dye Tommy Marino NBA players expressing their thoughts and opinions on the Eric Garner trial using symbolic speech; expressing themselves through the first amendment.

By: Tommy Marino

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GBS205 First Amendment Video - Video

Florida State Prison/First Amendment Audit
It #39;s hard to get into the heads of the people who claim that what I do somehow "baits", "tricks", (or my personal favorite) "lures" these poor little hapless public officials or private security...

By: HONORYOUROATH

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Florida State Prison/First Amendment Audit - Video

Jemal Countess/Getty Images

Jason Patric

On Thursday, a Los Angeles Superior Court judge will hear a novel First Amendment battle over the extent to which an in vitro father can mention his child's name.

STORY:CNN Gets First Amendment Victory in Video Captioning Dispute

At the center of the dispute is actor Jason Patric, who has been locked in a custody battle with his ex-girlfriend Danielle Schreiber over their four-year-old son Gus, who was born through artificial insemination. Thanks to California law, which grants the mother full custody unless there is a written agreement establishing parental rights before conception, a judge has denied The Lost Boys star access to his son.

As the custody issue goes to an appellate court next month, Patric has launched an organization called Stand Up for Gus to raise awareness of parental alienation. At a fundraising event last autumn, Matt Damon, Kiefer Sutherland and Jon Hamm were among the celebrities on hand. Patric has also built awareness for the project with interviews on shows like 20/20 and The View. The actor has also established Twitter and Facebook pages that mention and picture Gus.

According to Patty Glaser, one of the Glaser Weil attorneys representing Schreiber, this amounts to a "public relations tirade" from a father who she says didn't want his name on the birth certificate so as to avoid attention from the paparazzi.

STORY:'Freeway' Ricky Ross vs. Rick Ross: First Amendment Protects Hip-Hop Persona

Schreiber is now demanding a restraining order. "We are asking him not to use the childs name and likeness for commercial purposes without moms permission," Glaser tells The Hollywood Reporter.

In the past, celebrities like Liam Neeson and Sandra Bullock have been the ones leaning on likeness rights laws to stop the unauthorized use of their fame. Other celebrities have asserted privacy laws to keep the media from intruding upon their space. In this case, it's the other way around, as the celebrity is the one raising a First Amendment defense.

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Jason Patric's Sperm Spawns First Amendment Battle

Published December 13, 2014

FILE- In this Dec. 11, 2010 file photo, SantaCon participants John Paul, center, dressed as an Elf and Michael Smallwood, dressed as Santa, ride the E train downtown New York. The annual event has faced mounting pressure from politicians, police and community groups as it grew from hundreds to thousands of costumed participants in roughly a decade. This years festivities fall on the same day as a planned march to protest recent killings of unarmed civilians by police. Santacon organizers are asking celebrants to keep their partying indoors (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)(The Associated Press)

NEW YORK New York's costumed pub crawl known as SantaCon is under way after a prominent civil rights lawyer gave attendees lesson in the First Amendment.

Lawyer Norman Siegel said Saturday the government cannot ban SantaCon. But he said the government can reasonably regulate the event.

SantaCon organizers retained Siegel last week as part of an effort to tame the excesses of the daylong party. Attendees started spreading out among midtown bars shortly after he spoke.

New Yorkers have complained in past years about drunken Santas vomiting in the streets. But organizers say last year's SantaCon raised $60,000 for charity, mostly through partnerships with participating bars.

This year's festivities fall on the same day as a planned protest over killings by police.

SantaCon organizers have expressed respect for the demonstration.

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NYC's SantaCon kicks off with First Amendment lesson

Harassed for using first amendment
On 7-16-2014 Austell Police set up a speed trap on Hwy 278 west. As I approach I flash my lights to warn other drivers. When I proceeded passed the the speed...

By: Georgia CopBlock

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Harassed for using first amendment - Video

Simmons College v. the First Amendment
How much does the Simmons College community actually know about the First Amendment?

By: Meghan Pierce

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Simmons College v. the First Amendment - Video

America 101: First Amendment Rights
Here is something that I find really important that I think everyone should see so they know about it. This topic was very emotionally engaging for me so I a...

By: Gaia Kutkuhn

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America 101: First Amendment Rights - Video

The Westboro Baptist Church and First Amendment
UNL Journalism 189H project. *Correction: the gentleman at 7:50 actually said "That wouldn #39;t surprise me." Thank you to all of our gracious participants!

By: Zo Hatfield

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The Westboro Baptist Church and First Amendment - Video