Blog 5: The Stifled Opinions of Dissent

-
The voices rarely heard in mainstream news, the thoughts hardly found in the internet search engines or in social media newsfeed, and all types of expressions promoting views that can be perceived as radical, unpatriotic, or overcritical are destined to become the stifled opinions of dissent. These are small factions that defend unpopular principles and viewpoints against the ones of prominent organizations that have extensive power in the government system holding a widespread influence on society. Examples of such voices can be the webpages or social media portals of libertarians, socialists, or American conservatives, or those from anti-war movements particularly in times of war. The question is if the First Amendment protects them.

The First Amendment protecting the freedom of expression has been tested in numerous occasions. In times of war or internal social turmoil, people who dare to express ideas that challenge the government have faced repression, censorship, and severe jail sentences. During the course of the 19th century, laws were used to suppress the voices of abolitionists, suffragists, pacifists, and labor organizations, and the early 20th century was not quite different. At the time of World War I, Woodrow Wilson sponsored the Espionage and Sedition Acts. The Sedition Act of 1918 made it a crime voicing, printing, writing, or publishing anything considered disloyal or insulting to the government. As a result, thousands of Americans faced criminal charges for criticizing the war. Even though the people charged under the Sedition Act of 1918 argued that the First Amendment should protect them they could not escape harsh jail sentences. Following the end of World War I, these First Amendment cases began to reach the Supreme Court, and it was then when the Supreme Court really weighed on the meaning of the First Amendment and determined that the First Amendment protection is not absolute after the court unanimously decided the Schenck case on March 3, 1919. Why?

Charles T. Schenck was a socialist accused of distributing a pamphlet that may obstruct the military draft in times of war. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes stated on this case that Schenck was guilty of inciting his readers into action and due to it the government had genuine reason to suppress or punish. Words have consequences, and incitement is a type of speech not protected under the First Amendment. The significance of this case is that it opened the way for other Supreme Court decisions that have limited freedom of press. Unrestricted speech from the voices of dissent in combination with the circumstances possibly incite their followers into actions that in the eyes of the government may indicate a clear and present danger. As a result, not all types of speech are protected by the First Amendment.
Image: https://www.whitehousehistory.org/photos/national-photo-company-political-prisoner-protesters
Sources:
  • https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2019/03/03/century-rulings-how-supreme-court-has-remade-free-speech/
  • https://www.aclu.org/other/freedom-expression-aclu-position-paper
  • https://www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/1597/free-speech-during-wartime

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Final Blog: My Online Presence

-
Image
    In almost thirty years, the rise of technology related to media and communication has been impressive. The birth of the World Wide Web started with one site in 1991. Today, the number of available websites reaches over 1.74 billion with 59 percent of the global population as active users. The internet and mobile technology innovations contributed to have in 2020 about 2.95 billion people around the world using social media and yet this number is constantly growing, and an expanding amount of 4.41 billion available apps in Google Play and Apple's App Store combined, and with them, digital technology has prompted a change on norms and the way of life to billions of people.     Actually, the technology of today is so interlocked with us as individuals and as a society that it works as part of ourselves to expand our communication capabilities and outreach potential without frontiers, bringing numerous advantages that impact our culture, lifestyle, economy, education, politics, awa
Read more

EOTO 1: Motion Pictures

-
Image
Introduction     In over one century, motion pictures have transformed the world, developing into the most popular and influential media of the 20th century and beyond, with great impact on cultures, societies, politics, and arts, as motion pictures achieve widespread presence to be viewed not only at movie theatres, but also on television broadcast, streaming services, and digital technology that constantly reach millions of people day after day.     Motion pictures, also called films or movies, became a form of art. Motion pictures emerged at the end of the 19th century and were quickly recognized as perhaps the first truly mass form of entertainment. Movies connect people with appealing stories about shared interests, dreams, or concerns, allowing people to perceive the world and understand others through a combination of art, talent, industry, and technology. The Beginning of Motion Pictures Muybridge & Marey     In the 19th century, motion pictures resulted from experimenting
Read more