Top Law Professor: U.S. Heading Toward Criminalization Of Speech

America is moving dangerously toward the criminalization of speech, which until now has been protected by the First Amendment, even if it’s offensive, according to constitutional expert Jonathan Turley.

He’s a law professor at George Washington University, and commented recently on a case from Connecticut, where a 16-year-old student at Fairfield Warde High is accused of taking a photo of a black classmate and posting it on social media with a “racial slur.”

AP reported police arrested the student on a state hate crime charge of “ridicule on account of creed, religion, colo9r, denomination, nationality or race.” . . .

“Free speech demands bright lines. One of the greatest threats to free speech is the chilling effect caused by ambiguous or vague standards like the one contained in this statute. Every case of an obnoxious or repugnant individual invites us to make an exception or adopt some nuanced excuse for not following our principles. The temptation is particularly great in cases like this one when defending free speech can be confused with supporting bigotry,” he said. . .

“We can all condemn racist speech without curtailing free speech our society. Otherwise, we will find ourselves on the same slippery slope as Europe toward criminal speech codes and censored speech,” he said. (Read more from “Top Law Professor: U.S. Heading Toward Criminalization Of Speech” HERE)

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