Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw), Guest Blogger
After a few recent discussions about Free Speech in earlier threads, I came across another example of how limited our Free Speech really is. At a recent speech by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a former CIA employee, Ray McGovern, attempted to protest her speech about Democracy and Freedom of Speech and how the freedom to disseminate information helped the Egyptians rid themselves of a brutal dictator.
“As Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday about the failures of foreign leaders to respect people’s freedoms, a 71-year-old U.S. veteran Army officer, a man who spent 27 years in the CIA and delivered presidential daily briefs, a peace activist and proponent of nonviolence, the man who famously confronted Donald Rumsfeld for his war lies, the man who drafted our letter to Spain and delivered it to the Spanish Embassy on Monday, our friend Ray McGovern turned his back in silence. As Clinton continued to speak about respecting the rights of protesters, her guards — including an uniformed policeman and an unidentified plain-clothed official — grabbed Ray, dragged him off violently, brutalized him, double-cuffed him with metal handcuffs, and left him bleeding in jail. As he was hauled away (see video), Ray shouted “So this is America?” Clinton went right on mouthing her hypocrisies without a pause.” Truthout
When I read this sad story about Mr. McGovern, it reminded me of a similar incident where a University of Florida student named Andrew Meyer was being rude and obnoxious in asking questions of Senator John Kerry in 2007 and he was attacked by police and eventually tasered into submission. You remember the “Don’t tase me Bro” guy don’t you? What do these two stories have in common? I believe that they are both examples of our First Amendment rights being reduced or eliminated in front of our very eyes. Where was Sec. Clinton when this arrest happened? She was at the podium and didn’t bat an eye when McGovern was hauled off by police just as John Kerry allowed the tasing of Andrew Meyer to happen at his speech.
What was Mr. McGovern’s crime? He had the audacity to turn his back on Sec. Clinton’s speech! Off with his head! Well he did get to keep his head but he was thrown in jail for over 3 hours and was injured during the arrest by the officers and was not given medical assistance. What did the obnoxious Mr. Meyer do to get arrested and assaulted with a taser? He was just being a pain in the ass.
Is this the Free Speech that you imagine when you read the First Amendment? Is this the Free Speech that the founders of this country had in mind when they decided Free Speech was so important that they were going to make it the very First Amendment? Is Mr. Cox in Indiana who lost his deputy Attorney General’s job over his “give them live ammunition” tweet that Prof. Turley discussed earlier this week egregious enough to differentiate his situation from Mr. McGovern’s speech and the Taser guy’s rudeness? Are Free Speech zones actually an infringement of our Free Speech?
I think Justice William O. Douglas said it best when he described the First Amendment and its intended impact on society in the 1949 Terminello v. Chicago decision. “A function of free speech under our system of government is to invite dispute. It may indeed best serve its high purposes when it induces a condition of unrest, creates dissatisfaction with conditions as they are, or even stirs people to anger. Speech is often provocative and challenging. It may strike at prejudices and preconceptions and have profound unsettling effects as it presses for acceptance of an idea.” Terminello
Provocative speech is supposed to be protected under the First Amendment according to Justice Douglas. Was Mr. Meyer and Mr. McGovern just being too provocative for some people’s tastes or were they actually properly exercising their right to free speech?
Submitted by Lawrence Rafferty, (rafflaw) Guest Blogger
Diogenes
Prof. Zinn was right to warn his students to be careful, but to not even try to assert your free speech rights is akin to giving them up. As Justice Douglas said, one of the functions of free speech is to invite dispute.
Buddha,
Justice Douglas is one of my favorite Supremes. No pretense, just lay out for all to see.
Buddha, Maybe it will happen about in about 20 years after the republicans totally break the unions. I am not holding my breath. I remember when John Edwards mentioned how badly the poor fair in this country, and he was quickly accused of trying to create class war fare.
Prof. Zinn already pointed out the uselessness of this “Freedom of Speech” some 5 years ago.
He warned his students that they are bound to be arrested if the take part in demonstrations and this Utopian “Freedom of Speech” law will be of no legal help to them.
He provided many practical examples to substantiate this point.
As to Madam Clinton, we all know Bernard Shaw’s immortal “Lady, we already established what you are, now we have to negotiate the price.” [quote from my memory]
I disagree, Smom. Those effects may slow the onset of class warfare, but the won’t stop it in the long run. Social inequity is a compounding stressor. By that, I mean the pressure it creates on society leaves a residual effect that builds no matter how one tries to mitigate it – like bad water leaching out lime into pipes. Until you clean the water before it enters the system, eventually a pipe is going to block and break no matter how much CLR you pour down the sink. Fixing the root cause – social inequity and injustice – is the only true long term fix.
rafflaw, It just looked like to Hillary that it was another day another protester – not good.
This country is also so deeply polarized on social issues that it is impossible for me to see how class warfare erupts. It is Fox’s motto not to bring up class disparity and racial inequality. Fox news and the fundamentalist churches have a hold on too many people for this too happen in my opinion.
raff,
Douglas was a good man.
Buddha,
I wish you wouldn’t beat around the bush and speak your mind!:)
I would agree that these two incidents are examples of the Freedom of Speech being slowly eroded. I thought Justice Douglas’ words were very instructive. It has been a long time since I read the Terminello decision.
AY It could but the state employee democrats are not going to get together with the anti-union working class people. That is why I don’t see it happening. Also poor southern whites will not join with people of color.
Buddha,
I was watching some show on the ID channel this morning…. I think this entire nation is going to erupt over class warfare… Period… I think Louisiana’s Bugaloso has some very interesting story’s about the Police/LEO being in the Clan…. Hell…enough said…. they had to keep em down…. Jump it about 10/15 years…. lets go to Ohio…..
“Was Mr. Meyer and Mr. McGovern just being too provocative for some people’s tastes or were they actually properly exercising their right to free speech?”
That they were properly exercising their right to free speech is irrelevant when dealing with jackbooted authoritarian fascist thugs who stifle dissent by any means necessary to preserve their own crooked hides and treat the Constitution like toilet paper to please their corporate bosses.
I’ll be awaiting my tazing over here.
Swarthmore Mom,
this time I spelled your name correctly! sorry!
AY,
I can understand why you wanted to be on the roof or the place you worked at, but I can understand the Secret Service in their concerns. Whether they handled the issue with you properly might be another story.
Kay,
Ray McGovern is an active anti-war activist, but since when is that a crime?
Swarthmoe Mom,
The link worked in your first response. You can also find the video in the Truthout article that I linked above. Secretary Clinton did not even stumble as a person who was just standing in the aisle with his back turned to her was grabbed and hauled away!
I’d like to see Ray McGovern’s Joint Automated Booking System records.
rafflaw,
After going to school with over 50K students…. I try and avoid crowds…. used to take all day to register for classes…. I think the first time I did that they were not even using punch cards…. Then we did….
It would have been easy but then I would not have been at work….and that was wen Texas was Democratic and Ann Richards was the State Treasurer…
It did not work again.
http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/My29YT1T4R4?fs=1&hl=en_US
AY,
Kind of an interesting location, but with Texas’ history I might be able to understand the Secret Service’s nervousness! If you were not allowed reasonable acces on the ground and I am not talking about free speech zones, that would be a horse of a different color.
Let me tell you about the time Ronnie and Georgie came to Texas….I was wanting to see it from the roof top of the office building I was working in…we did about 4 other Assistant AG’s…..Our party did not last too long as on top of the hotel next door some guys with rifles aim at us suggested that we clear the roof… being defiant… I stayed my ground until they made their intentions very clear…. All’s I wanted to do was hear what they had to say…. It was really the best place to be…better than the roof top of the hotel…