LIMITING LIBERTY

Court Restricts Speech Again

Freedom of speech received another devastating blow in June. In a
divided vote, the Supreme Court shot down an appeal by Joseph
Frederick in the "Bong Hits 4 Jesus" case. According to cbsnews.com,
the decision can limit any speech or action made by a student that
appears to promote drug use.

The case involved a banner made by Frederick, who was a senior at
Juneau-Douglas High School in Juneau, Alaska, at the time, which
sported the words "Bong Hits 4 Jesus." Frederick was suspended by the
school's principal and then sued both the school board and the principal.

The Lantern thinks the court acted too harshly in its decision.
Although the banner represented an immature prank made by a student
solely to get a rise out of his principal, further restrictions on the
speech of all students should not have been the outcome of this case.

Since the late '80s, students' freedom of speech has been continually
eaten away. In 1988, the case of Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier resulted in
broad censorship of high school student newspapers. High school
students are not the only ones who are affected by these new
legislations. In 2005, the case of Hosty v. Carter resulted in a
disturbing conclusion. In this case, the 7th U.S. District Court of
Appeals ruled that the Hazelwood restrictions on speech were
applicable to the university level. Clearly age is not the only factor
in these new restrictions on speech.

The Lantern believes that it is important to teach the rights
guaranteed by the First Amendment and stress the importance of these
rights to our country's ideals. How will the younger generation be
able to respect these rights if limits are continually made that warp
these rights?

The decision also highlights the troubles to come with the current
Supreme Court lineup. Although Bush's time is almost up, his
conservative legacy will live on for years with the justices he
nominated - John Roberts and Samuel Alito - both of whom voted in the
majority against Frederick. The Lantern believes that it is a scary
time when the highest court in the country continues to succeed in
limiting First Amendment rights. Now the question is, what will be
restricted next?