CH. 19-4 FREEDOM OF ASSEMBLY AND PETITION

ADVANCED AMERICAN GOVERNMENT

THE CONSTITUTION’S GUARANTEES

• The Ist Amendment states:• “…the right of the people peaceably to

assemble, and to petition the Government for redress of grievances.”

• ASSEMBLE—to gather with one another• Things protected: written petitions, letters, or

advertisements; lobbying; or parades, marches, or other demonstrations

• CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE—violating the law nonviolently but deliberately

• Does the 1st and 14th Amends. Protect civil disobedience?

• Courts have consistently said the civil disobedience is not protected

TIME-PLACE-MANNER REGULATIONS

• Government can make and enforce reasonable rules concerning time, place, and manner of assemblies

• Grayned v. City of Rockford (1972)—USSC said a city could create a noise ordinance if an assembly near a school caused a disruption to activities

• Government rules must be CONTENT NEUTRAL• Can’t regulate what is said

PUBLIC PROPERTY

• Most demonstrations take place on public property: streets, sidewalks, public parks

• There is always some degree of conflict• USSC normally requires advance notice of a

demonstration by requiring a license, etc.

• GREGORY V. CHICAGO (1969)

• While under police protection, Dick Gregory and others marched, while singing, chanting, and carrying placards, from city hall to the mayor’s house 5 miles away

• They demanded the firing of the school’s superintendent and an end to de facto segregation

• A crowd of hundreds gathered, including many residents from the all-white neighborhood

• Bystanders began throwing insults and threat, as well as rocks, eggs, and other things

• Police tried to keep order, but they decided serious violence was going to break out

• Demonstrators were ordered to leave the area• Gregory and others refused and were arrested

and charged with disorderly conduct

• Their arrests and convictions were unanimously overturned

• USSC said they were just exercising their constitutional rights of assembly and petition

• Neighborhood residents caused the disruption, not the marchers

• Hill v. Colorado (2000)—USSC ruled 5-4 upholding a state law the limits “sidewalk counseling” at abortion clinics.

• Law creates an 8-foot buffer zone around anyone within 100 feet of the entrance

• No one may make an “unwanted approach” to talk or do such other things as hand out a leaflet or wave a sign

PRIVATE PROPERTY

• What is the ruling about demonstrations on private property such as a shopping mall?

• Very few cases but the right of assembly cannot be used to trespass on private property

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION

• This guarantees the right to associate with others to promote political, economic, and other social causes

• NAACP vs. Alabama (1958)—”…it is beyond doubt that freedom to engage in association for the advancement of beliefs and ideas is an inseparable aspect” of constitutional guarantees

• Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000)—The BSA has a constitutional right to exclude gays from their organization

• The New Jersey Supreme Court had said that Eagle Scout James Dale, who was dismissed because he was gay, should be re-instated.

• THE END