Judge rejects Trump's First Amendment challenge to indictment in Georgia election case
The judge overseeing the Georgia election interference case against Donald Trump and others has rejected arguments by the former president that the indictment was seeking to criminalize political speech protected by the First Amendment.
Federal appeals court rejects Florida 'Stop WOKE' restrictions
A federal appeals court Monday rejected restrictions that Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican lawmakers placed on addressing race-related issues in workplace training โ part of a controversial 2022 law that DeSantis dubbed the โStop WOKE Act.โ
DeSantis seeks dismissal of Disneyโs 1st Amendment lawsuit over former Reedy Creek district
Lawyers representing Gov. Ron DeSantis will ask a federal judge Tuesday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts involving the special taxing district formerly known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District.
Florida seeks go-ahead to enforce law aimed at drag shows
After suffering a setback at the U.S. Supreme Court, attorneys for Gov. Ron DeSantis' administration on Friday told a federal appeals court that a law aimed at preventing children from attending drag shows is tailored to the state's "unquestioned interest in protecting children from exposure to obscenity."
Florida House battles pediatricians over gender-dysphoria records subpoena
A statewide pediatricians association is pushing back in federal court against the Florida Houseโs efforts to obtain internal communications showing how the group adopted standards of care for the treatment of gender dysphoria
Educators, attorneys urge court to keep blocking Floridaโs โStop W.O.K.E. Actโ
Professors and other plaintiffs are urging a federal appeals court to keep in place a preliminary injunction against a new Florida law that seeks to restrict the way race-related concepts can be taught in universities.
US appeals court: Beauty pageant can bar trans contestants
A federal appellate court says a national beauty pageant has a First Amendment right to exclude a transgender woman from competing, because including her could interfere with the message the pageant has said it wants to send about "what it means to be a woman.โ.
Stone tablet marking First Amendment freedoms finds new home
The faade will be reinstalled at The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia. The tablet is engraved with the First Amendment, which protects freedom of speech, press, religion, assembly and the right to petition the government. It's a gift from the Freedom Forum, the creator of the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the First Amendment. AdโItโs so meaningful to bring the text of the First Amendment to Philadelphia,โ National Constitution Center President Jeffrey Rosen said in a statement. He said it would โinspire visitors for generations to come.โA dedication ceremony is planned for later this year.
Federal judge postpones Trump ban on popular app TikTok
NEW YORK โ A federal judge on Sunday postponed a Trump administration order that would have banned the popular video sharing app TikTok from U.S. smartphone app stores around midnight. The ruling followed an emergency hearing Sunday morning in which lawyers for TikTok argued that the administration's app-store ban would infringe on First Amendment rights and do irreparable harm to the business. In arguments to Judge Nichols, TikTok lawyer John Hall said that TikTok is more than an app, since it functions as a โmodern day version of a town square." In addition, Hall argued that a ban would prevent existing users from automatically receiving security updates, eroding national security. Trump set the process in motion with executive orders in August that declared TikTok and another Chinese app, WeChat, threats to national security.
Trump defies virus rules as 'peaceful protest' rallies grow
WASHINGTON โ President Donald Trump is running as the โlaw and orderโ candidate. But they have largely not tried to block the gatherings of thousands of people, which Trump and his team deem โpeaceful protestsโ protected by the First Amendment. An indoor rally that Trump held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June was blamed for a surge of virus infections there. Trump held an indoor rally at the Xtreme Manufacturing facility in Henderson, Nevada, on Sunday night. The state restricts gatherings to 50 people โ based on White House reopening guidelines โ- but thousands of supporters packed into the warehouse space nonetheless.
You have the right to protest as an American. Heres what that means
If you plan to join or organize your own protest, you need to know that you have rights and, even more importantly, what they entail. Below, the American Civil Liberties Union provides context to the rights you have to enact change, and what to do should a protest do awry. [RELATED: George Floyds death: Heres 5 ways you can take action]What are my rights to protest? When you are lawfully present in any public space, you have the right to photograph anything in plain view, including federal buildings and the police, Azis said. If law enforcement shuts down a protest through a dispersal order, it must be as a last resort, according to the ACLU.
Tech-rights group sues Trump to stop social-media order
NEW YORK A tech-focused civil liberties group on Tuesday sued to block President Donald Trump's executive order that seeks to regulate social media, saying it violates the First Amendment and chills speech. Trump's order, signed last week, could allow more lawsuits against internet companies like Twitter and Facebook for what their users post, tweet and stream. Trump, without evidence, has long accused tech companies of being biased against conservatives. There was pushback against Trump's order from various sources. Civil rights and libertarian organizations and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce also criticized Trump's order.
George Floyds death: Heres 5 ways you can take action
ORLANDO, Fla. Its an incident that has started a national conversation-- the death of George Floyd. People can head to change.org and sign the Justice for George Floyd petition which, as of Saturday at 9:00 a.m., had nearly 7 million signatures and counting. To make sure your contributions are going to the right place, consider donating to the Official George Floyd Memorial Fund on GoFundMe. A man kneels on the street in front of police officers while chanting "I can't breathe" during a protest over the death of George Floyd, Friday, May 29, 2020, in Los Angeles. As a disclaimer, not everyone will be comfortable taking action nor is everyone comfortable taking action in the same ways.