Category: Free Speech

Constitutional Law, Free Speech, International, Society

Father Arrested After Continuing To Call His Child “She” After Court-Ordered Gender Transition Treatments

There is an extraordinary case out of British Columbia where a father referenced as CD was arrested after he continued to refer to his biological 14-year-old daughter (known as AB) as “she” and his “daughter” after he transitioned to a male gender.  The Supreme Court of British Columbia, Canada ordered that the child receive testosterone injections without obtaining parental consent. CD opposed the transition as the parent but he was overruled after physicians at BC Children’s Hospital who decided the girl should receive testosterone injections. The father continued to defy gag orders, including a bar on his trying to persuade with his own child to wait before making such a change. Continue reading “Father Arrested After Continuing To Call His Child “She” After Court-Ordered Gender Transition Treatments” →

Academia, Free Speech

UNC Law Student Faces Recall Effort For Disagreeing That An Argument Between Students Was Racist

Continue reading “UNC Law Student Faces Recall Effort For Disagreeing That An Argument Between Students Was Racist” →

Academia, Free Speech

“Generational Trauma”: Students Demand The Firing Of Africana Studies Professor Who Used Racial Slur In Class On Hip-Hop

Melissa Hargrove, who teaches Africana Studies and researches the hip-hop movement, is the latest academic to face a campaign for termination after she was accused of using the “n-word” in a class at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. For the last month, the university has been struggling with the controversy. In her class, Hargrove was using an acronym and discussing a song with the same word from rapper Tupac.  The university ordered her into mandatory training but students want her fired. Continue reading ““Generational Trauma”: Students Demand The Firing Of Africana Studies Professor Who Used Racial Slur In Class On Hip-Hop” →

Events, Free Speech, Uncategorized

Turley To Moderate Panel On Section 230 and Internet Censorship

This afternoon, I have the pleasure of moderating an outstanding panel as part of the Federal Bar Association conference.  The panel is entitled “Governing the Internet and the Future of Section 230 Continuing Legal Education on the Constitution“ and will be held virtually on Wednesday, March 17, 2021 12:00 p.m. EDT. Joining on the panel will be Carrie Goldberg, C.A. Goldberg (Victims’ Rights Law Firm); Philip Hamburger (Maurice and Hilda Friedman Professor of Law, Columbia Law School); and  Samir Jain (Center for Democracy and Technology, Director of Policy). Continue reading “Turley To Moderate Panel On Section 230 and Internet Censorship” →

Free Speech, Media

The Disappeared Ones: Osbourne and Others Show The Sheer Panic Of Facing Erasure

The public testimonial of Sharon Osbourne last week was abject, if not hysterical. Osbourne, 68, described how she “panicked, felt blindsided, got defensive & allowed my fear & horror” to control her comments. Osbourne had supported Piers Morgan, who stated that he did not believe Meghan Markle. In a tense interview, Osbourne became highly defensive (and rather rude) after Sheryl Underwood asked whether she was defending racism in supporting a friend. Osbourne asked her co-host to explain where Morgan’s criticism was racist and said she felt she was being put into “the electric chair.” Then the power was turned on as the Internet lit up with calls for her firing. After immediate “reflection,” Osbourne repeatedly professed her “deep respect & love for the black community” in saying that she will “continue to learn, listen and do better” in the future.  The important thing was that she hoped to have a future. Despite the apology, she is now under investigation by CBS and she has been declared “on hiatus” from the show. Continue reading “The Disappeared Ones: Osbourne and Others Show The Sheer Panic Of Facing Erasure” →

Constitutional Law, Courts, Free Speech

North Carolina Supreme Court Upholds Judicially Mandated Speech And Censorship On Blog
An opinion out of North Carolina is raising very serious concern over free speech this week.  The North Carolina Court of Appeals upheld the actions of William Coward, a Macon County judge, who not only convicted a blogger of the crime of recording a court hearing, but went further to force  Davin Eldridge to write and post a lengthy essay about respect — and then delete any negative comments from those objecting to the judicially-coerced speech.  The opinion in my view is an outrageous overreach of judicial authority and an attack on free speech. Yet the North Carolina Supreme Court has now upheld the sentence without any opinion.
Constitutional Law, Criminal law, Free Speech

Kentucky Moves To Criminalize Taunting Police Officers

Kentucky’s state Senate has passed a bill that raises deep concerns over free speech.  The bill would make it a crime to “taunt” a police officer, an act that would sweep an array of protected speech under the criminal code and would face serious constitutional challenges. Continue reading “Kentucky Moves To Criminalize Taunting Police Officers” →

Academia, Free Speech

New York College Under Fire After Targeting Conservative Students and Groups

We have been discussing how universities are remaining silent as student governments limit rights of free speech and association, including the impeachment of conservative students.   Now, students at Skidmore College have reportedly barred fellow students from starting a campus chapter of the conservative group Young Americans for Liberty (YAL). In Rochester Institute of Technology, the student government has impeached student Senator Jacob Custer for defending campus police officers wearing Thin Blue Line masks. In both controversies, there are appeals or reviews being pursued but students were subjected to weeks of abusive campaigns for the exercise of their free speech and associational rights.

Continue reading “New York College Under Fire After Targeting Conservative Students and Groups” →

Free Speech, International, Media

Piers Morgan Put Under Investigation After Saying That He Didn’t Believe A Word Of Meghan Markle’s Interview
I have previously admitted to being one of the few people apparently on planet Earth with little interest in the Royal family or the continuing travails of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.  (No, I did not even tune into the wedding).  However, the coverage is now pulling some of us into this vortex with legal and media developments. One such issue arose this week after Piers Morgan, the co-host of ITV’s “Good Morning Britain, committed the apparently unpardonable sin of declaring on air that he didn’t believe a word of what Markle told Oprah in her recent interview. Markle herself filed a complaint with ITV. For that transgression, Morgan is now reportedly under investigation by United Kingdom’s “Ofcom,” or Office of Communications, for violation of its “harm and offense rules.”  It is another example of how both rights of the free press and free speech are under assault in the United Kingdom.

Continue reading “Piers Morgan Put Under Investigation After Saying That He Didn’t Believe A Word Of Meghan Markle’s Interview” →

Academia, Constitutional Law, Courts, Free Speech

Near Unanimous Supreme Court Rules Against Georgia Gwinnett College In Free Speech Victory

If Georgia Gwinnett College wanted to foster greater unity in its use of “free speech zones,” it succeeded in prompting a near unanimous Supreme Court in ruling against it in favor of free speech this week. The Court voted 8-1 that two former students should be able to sue for nominal or symbolic damages to avoid mootness on their challenges.  Only Chief Justice John Roberts stood against the ability of the two former students to sue over the loss of free speech rights. Continue reading “Near Unanimous Supreme Court Rules Against Georgia Gwinnett College In Free Speech Victory” →

Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Media

British Court Rules Against The Press In Lawsuit By Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex

There is a saturation of coverage of the upcoming interview of Oprah and Prince Harry and Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. The increasingly public spat between the Crown and the couple is turning nasty with an investigation into alleged bullying and abuse of household staff by Meghan.  All of that sensational coverage has distracted from a far more substantive and costly matter.  Meghan just won a case against Associated Newspapers and the ruling by London High Court Judge Mark Warby should be a concern for anyone who values the freedom of the press. Continue reading “British Court Rules Against The Press In Lawsuit By Meghan, The Duchess of Sussex” →

Bizarre, Free Speech, Media, Politics, Society

“Vial Of Death”: Farrakhan’s Anti-Vaccine Statements Expose The Fallacy Of Internet Censorship Policies

We have been discussing the expanded censorship on the Internet and the threat to both free speech and free press rights. As stated recently in testimony before the House, I remain an unabashed “Internet Originalist,” favoring the free forum for speech that once defined these Big Tech companies. The expanding censorship of the Internet continues to show bias and contractions as Democratic members push for “robust modification” to silence opposing views of everything from climate change to social justice. A new controversy shows the contradictions as people spread the false claims of Rev. Louis Farrakhan that the Covid-19 vaccines are really the “vial of death.” The continued spreading of his views shows that speech like water has a way of finding a way out, even untrue and hateful speech. The proper response is not less but more (and better) speech. Continue reading ““Vial Of Death”: Farrakhan’s Anti-Vaccine Statements Expose The Fallacy Of Internet Censorship Policies” →

Academia, Free Speech, International

American and South Korean Professors Fight For Academic Freedom In Controversy Over “Comfort Women” Publications

We have been following assaults on academic freedom not just in the United States in recent years but abroad in recent years. This includes a researcher in Sweden who recently stopped Covid research after a harassment campaign due to his findings of the low risk poised by children returning to school. In South Korea, another such battle is waging over a publication by J. Mark Ramseyer, the Mitsubishi Professor of Japanese Legal Studies at Harvard Law School, suggesting that Korean “comfort women” from World War II were likely contracted, not forced, by the Japanese military. It is a theory that is understandably outrageous and hurtful for many. Ramseyer’s writings have been denounced and even cities like Philadelphia have passed condemnations of his work. What is more concerning is the effort to fire Ramseyer or bar the publication that ran his theory. Now South Korean faculty who stood up for academic freedom are being targeted, even though they did not write in support of Ramseyer’s theory as opposed to his right to publish his views. Continue reading “American and South Korean Professors Fight For Academic Freedom In Controversy Over “Comfort Women” Publications” →

Academia, Free Speech, International

Sweden Moves To Protect Academic Freedom After Professor Quits Covid Research Due To Harassment

We have been discussing erosion of free speech and academic freedom protections at colleges and universities around the United States. Most faculty have been conspicuously silent as their colleagues are attacked, suspended, or even fired for taking opposing views on systemic racism, police brutality, or movements like Black Lives Matter. In Sweden, the response has been quite different after Professor Jonas Ludvigsson, announced that he would stop all further research on Covid-19 after a campaign of abuse and harassment following his study on the low threat that the virus poses to children and teachers. The country is ramping up protections for academics to combat such cancelling campaigns.

Continue reading “Sweden Moves To Protect Academic Freedom After Professor Quits Covid Research Due To Harassment” →