The First Amendment is one of our most interesting rights. Where does your right to free speech and expression begin and where does it end? In theory it is limitless, however the case of National Socialist Party of America v. The Village of Skokie, 432 U.S. 43 (1977) proved how head scratching this fundamental right truly is.
Long story short, the Nazi's wanted to march in Skokie Illinois and seeing as how a large portion of the suburb's population was comprised of Holocaust survivors there were problems, naturally. The Nazi's took the town to court claiming they were infringing upon their freedom of expression. Eventually it was ruled that the could march... just not in Skokie. This case proved how important it is to protect the First Amendment, even if it is protecting unpopular beliefs.
For further reading check out the book: When the Nazis Came to Skokie
Now here is a clip reflecting on the controversy in Skokie:
No comments:
Post a Comment