Posts Tagged ‘military medal’

Speech News |

House votes for revised Stolen Valor Act

New bill, drawn up in response to Supreme Court ruling, would outlaw profiting from false claims about military honors.

Speech News |

Rules about wearing military medals again pass 9th Circuit test

Panel takes note of high court’s Stolen Valor ruling but says law at issue in its case prohibits ‘conduct that has an expressive element’ and not pure speech.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Honoring our military medalists the right way

News items about fraud indictments and a Pentagon website suggest there’s no need to rewrite the Stolen Valor Act, which the Supreme Court struck down.

First Amendment Analysis • Supreme Court Case |

First Amendment overshadowed in 2011-12 term

The Supreme Court’s six First Amendment-related rulings followed a well-established pattern, including wins, losses and a ‘no-decision.’

Speech News |

U.S. senator pushes reworked Stolen Valor bill

Meanwhile, Pentagon plans to establish a searchable database of valor awards, hoping for a technological fix to the problem of falsely claimed military honors.

Speech News |

Veterans respond to Stolen Valor ruling

One Medal of Honor recipient says Supreme Court protected the freedoms he fought for by tossing out law that made it a crime to lie about having earned military honors, but others call the ruling a slap in the face.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Breyer’s concurring opinion is cause for concern

Justice may have reached same conclusion as majority — finding that Stolen Valor Act is unconstitutional — but how he did so is troubling.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Video: Stolen Valor Act ruling analyzed

First Amendment Center’s Ken Paulson and David L. Hudson Jr. discuss the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in United States v. Alvarez, which struck down the Stolen Valor Act.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Expose lies with the truth

Those who would dilute the value of military honors can be outed in public with no sacrifice of free speech.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Kennedy invokes counterspeech doctrine in Alvarez

In opinion striking down Stolen Valor Act, justice notes principle that the government should counter false, bad speech with true, good speech.

Speech Commentary • Supreme Court Case |

Stolen Valor ruling a win for free speech, common sense

If Congress wants to punish false military claims, it need only redraft the law to include requirement of defrauding for personal gain.

Speech News • Supreme Court Case |

Supreme Court strikes down Stolen Valor law

Justices vote 6-3 in favor of Xavier Alvarez, a former local elected official in California who falsely claimed he was a decorated war veteran.

Speech Analysis • Supreme Court Case |

Justices may uphold Stolen Valor Act

Government defender of law against lying about earning military medals seems to succeed in portraying it as narrow, as opposing counsel concedes act does not ‘necessarily chill any truthful speech.’

Speech News • Supreme Court Case |

High court appears torn over law barring lies about medals

Some justices said they worried that upholding Stolen Valor Act could lead to laws that might make it illegal to lie about an extramarital affair or a college degree.

Speech Analysis • Supreme Court Case |

Stolen Valor Act case: a checklist of things to watch

How the justices might vote in United States v. Alvarez, concerning lying about military medals, is tough to predict, but here’s a look at some factors that could emerge in oral arguments Feb. 22.

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About The First Amendment Center

We support the First Amendment and build understanding of its core freedoms through education, information and entertainment.

The center serves as a forum for the study and exploration of free-expression issues, including freedom of speech, of the press and of religion, and the rights to assemble and to petition the government.

Founded by John Seigenthaler, the First Amendment Center is an operating program of the Freedom Forum and is associated with the Newseum and the Diversity Institute. The center has offices in the John Seigenthaler Center at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., and at the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

The center’s programs, including the Religious Freedom Education Project at the Newseum, provide education and information to the public and groups including First Amendment scholars and experts, educators, government policy makers, legal experts and students. The center is nonpartisan and does not lobby, litigate or provide legal advice. See First Amendment Center Fact Sheet and FAQs. See internships info.

The center’s website, www.firstamendmentcenter.org, is one of the most authoritative sources of news, information and commentary in the nation on First Amendment issues. It features daily updates on news about First Amendment-related developments, as well as detailed reports about U.S. Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment, and commentary, analysis and special reports on free expression, press freedom and religious-liberty issues. Support the work of the First Amendment Center.

1 For All

1 for All is a national nonpartisan program designed to build understanding and support for First Amendment freedoms. 1 for All provides teaching materials to the nation’s schools, supports educational events on America’s campuses and reminds the public that the First Amendment serves everyone, regardless of faith, race, gender or political leanings. It is truly one amendment for all. Visit 1 for All at http://1forall.us/

Help tomorrow’s citizens find their voice: Teach the First Amendment

The most basic liberties guaranteed to Americans – embodied in the 45 words of the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – assure Americans a government that is responsible to its citizens and responsive to their wishes.

These 45 words are as alive and important today as they were more than 200 years ago. These liberties are neither liberal nor conservative, Democratic nor Republican – they are the basis for our representative democratic form of government.

We know from studies beginning in 1997 by the nonpartisan First Amendment Center, and from studies commissioned by the Knight Foundation and others, that few adult Americans or high school students can name the individual five freedoms that make up the First Amendment.

The lesson plans – drawn from materials prepared by the Newseum and the First Amendment Center – will draw young people into an exploration of how their freedoms began and how they operate in today’s world. Students will discuss just how far individual rights extend, examining rights in the school environment and public places. The lessons may be used in history and government, civics, language arts and journalism, art and debate classes. They may be used in sections or in their entirety. Many of these lesson plans indicate an overall goal, offer suggestions on how to teach the lesson and list additional resources and enrichment activities.

See more about lesson plans.

First Amendment Moot Court Competition

The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution – the cornerstone of American democracy – is the focus of the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition. Recognized as one of the nation's finest constitutional-law competitions, this annual event features a current First Amendment controversy.

During the two-day competition in February, each team will participate in a minimum of four rounds, arguing a hypothetical based on a current First Amendment controversy before panels of accomplished jurists, legal scholars and attorneys.

Past participants in the National First Amendment Moot Court Competition have represented law schools nationwide, from Brooklyn Law School to Duke University to Arizona State to Harvard.

The 23rd Annual National First Amendment Moot Court Competition is Feb. 21-22, 2013. See registration information and details about the competition.

FIRST AMENDMENT CENTER ARCHIVES

State of the First Amendment survey reports

The State of the First Amendment surveys, commissioned since 1997 by the First Amendment Center and Newseum, are a regular check on how Americans view their first freedoms of speech, press, assembly, religion and petition.

The periodic surveys examine public attitudes toward freedom of speech, press, religion and the rights of assembly and petition; and sample public opinion on contemporary issues involving those freedoms. See the reports.