According to all known laws of aviation, there is no way a bee should be able to fly. Its wings are too small to get its fat little body off the ground. The bee, of course, flies anyway.
By heelysboy
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Schenck v. United States
Socialist Charles Schenck attempted to spread flyers protesting U.S involvement in WW2 and the draft. The U.S government charged Schneck wih violating the Espionage Act, which prohibited anti-war speech. -
Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire
Walter Chaplinsky, a Jehovah's Witness, was passing out pamphlets on a public sidewalk and speaking against organized religion. After a large crowd surrounded Champlinsky and began making a scene, police officers arrested and were verbally attacked by Champlinsky.
The Supreme Court upheld the arrest on the grounds that the use of insulting or "fighting" words was not protected by the First Amendment. -
West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette
The West Virginia State Board of Education declared that all students and teachers must participate in the flag salute. Those who refused to participate were expelled and charged with delinquency. The Supreme court ruled that such a law was unconstitutional, as the act of forcing citizens to participate was declared antithetical to the First Amendment. -
Cohen v. California
Paul Robert Cohen was arrested for wearing a jacket bearing the phrase "F*ck the Draft" inside a Los Angeles Courthouse under the charges of "maliciously and willfully disturbing the peace... by offensive conduct."
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Cohen, arguing that the law prohibiting such actions as too vague and that Cohen's jacket did not insult any one individual and as such did not disturb the peace. -
Pittsburgh Press Co. v. Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations
A member of the National Organization for Women filed a complaint to the Pittsburgh Commission on Human Relations arguing that the Pittsburgh Press Co.'s advertisements, which were classified under "help wanted-male" and "help wanted-female" were discriminatory.
The Supreme Court ruled that help wanted ads were excluded from the protections the First Amendment, and that sex-segregating advertising was no more acceptable than ads for prostitutes or drugs. -
Givhan v. Western Line Consolidated School District
African American high school teacher Bessie Givhan was displeased with the way the school was run and often expressed her displeasure in private conversation with the principle. Because of this, Givhan was labeled hostile and unreasonable, and at the end of the year Givhan was fired.
All nine justices of the Supreme Court sided with Givhan, stating that by expressing opinions of public concern in private conversation Givhan was protected under the First Amendment and could not be fired. -
Connick v. Myers
An employee named Shelia Myers was fired after distributing questionnaires to coworkers regarding the managerial skills of her superior Harry Connick Sr. Myers filed a suit against Connick claiming he had violated her right to free speech.
The Supreme Court ruled that against Myers, claiming that her questionnaire consulted subjects of personal concern instead of public concern, and that her actions damaged the relationships necessary to ensure the efficient operation of the office. -
Bethel School District v. Fraser
A high school student, Matthew Fraser, gave a speech nominating his friend for student body vice president that was filled with sexual innuendos. Fraser was the suspended for three days and prohibited from speaking at graduation. The school district asked the Supreme Court to review the case after Fraser filed a lawsuit against the school.
The Supreme court ruled in favor of the school district, saying that the school had the right to prohibit styles of expression that were sexually vulgar. -
Reno v. American Civil Liberties Union
The Communications Decency Act (CDA) forbade the knowing transmission of "obscene or indecent" messages or anything that depicted sexual activities to anyone under 18. The Supreme Court ruled against the CDA with the argument that, in denying minors access to potentially harmful speech, the CDA suppressed the adults, who had a constitutional right to give and receive the speech. As one Justice explained, "...the government may not reduce the adult population to only what is fit for children." -
Snyder v. Phelps
Albert Snyder, father of deceased U.S. Marine Lance Corporal Matthew Snyder, filed a suit against the Westboro Baptist Church (WBC) for defamation and infliction of emotional stress after they picketed Matthew's funeral and posted statements on their website denouncing Albert and his ex-wife.
In an 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the WBC, claiming that what WBC said and in the context of when and how it was said meant that WBC was protected under the First Amendment. -
Elonis v. United States
Anthony Douglas Elonis was in the middle of a divorce with his wife when he began writing and posting violent rap lyrics referencing his wife as well as law enforcement, many of them involving murder, death, and bombing. Elonis was convicted of making threats to various law enforcement as well as other unrelated persons. However, the Supreme Court overturned the ruling on the grounds that the court did not have the mens rae needed to convict Elonis. -
Heffernan v. City of Paterson
Jeffery Heffernan, a police officer, was observed picking up a campaign sign for a mayoral candidate. Heffernan claimed that he could not vote since he did not live in the city, and that he was picking up the sign for his mother. Heffernan was then demoted for his perceived involvement in the campaign.
The Supreme Court ruled that when an employer demoted an employee to prevent or punish them from engaging in protected speech, the employer was violating the employee's First Amendment right.
