Gay police officer loses right to make First Amendment case after he was hounded out of the department

A gay police officer who alleged that St. Cloud Police Department refused to allow him his First Amendment rights to work in the Twin Cities Pride Festival even if he used his vacation time lost a bid in federal court on the First Amendment claim. The court did say there was sufficient evidence to pursue [...]

Federal judge rules for disclosing signers of Washington anti-gay petition

A federal judge ruled that Protect Marriage Washington (PMW) must disclose the anti-gay petitions with signatures from a 2009 campaign to overturn the state’s same-sex domestic partner law. The judge wrote that the PMW had not demonstrated that the signers of the petition would suffer threats, harassment or reprisals when their names are published. -db [...]

Opinion: Tennessee high school principal tramples student’s free speech rights over gay rights T-shirt

When a student not gay himself tried to wear a T-shirt standing up for gay friends and advocating for a Gay-Straight Alliance at his school, the principal barged into his classroom to punish him in violation of the student’s free speech rights according to the American Civil Liberties Union. The student had defied the principal’s [...]

California appeals court rules public school could fire dean for ‘obscene’ ad on Craigslist

The California Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled that the San Diego Unified School District could fire a middle school dean for posting what the district claimed was an obscene “men seeking men” ad on Craigslist. The court said it was immaterial whether the students saw the ad or not. The appeals court upheld a [...]

Free speech: Supreme Court allows church protests at military funerals

In an 8-1 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that hurtful public speech in protests at a military funeral was protected by the First Amendment. Followers of the Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas had picketed the funeral of a Marine who died in combat in Iraq with signs that read “America is Doomed” and [...]

Gay rights group wants sexual orientation of judge candidates on the record

Equality California, a gay rights group, is sponsoring a bill in the state senate to require the governor to collect data for an annual report on the gender identity and sexual orientation of candidates for judge. The group is backing the law as a first step in gathering information that could show that the openly [...]

Opinion: Hateful speech of Michigan attorney general should be protected

A MediaShift writer argues that a Michigan official’s hate speech is protected by the First Amendment. The assistant attorney general posted harsh comments on the Internet about  a gay student-body president at the University of Michigan. -db MediaShift October 22, 2010 By Jonathan Peters For the last few months, Andrew Shirvell, an assistant attorney general [...]

Illinois: School district settles dispute with student wearing anti-gay T-shirt

The Indian Prairie School District is considering changes to its dress code to settle a lawsuit brought by a student forced to change wording of a T-shirt that read, “Be Happy, Not Gay.” -db Student Press Law Center October 7, 2010 By Chelsea Keenan ILLINOIS — The Indian Prairie School District may amend its dress [...]

Supreme Court rules Christian group must admit gays under college’s anti-discrimination policies

In a 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the claim that the First Amendment rights of a Christian group at the University of California’s Hastings College of Law were not violated by the college’s anti-discrimination policies. The group had attempted to admit gays. -db Los Angeles Times June 28, 2010 By Carol J. Williams [...]

New Jersey: Free speech advocates contest school ban on gay anthology

A conservative group has succeeded in convincing the Rancocas Valley Regional High School to remove an acclaimed anthology on teenage homosexuality from the library on the grounds that the anthology was vulgar, obscene and inappropriate. -db The Guardian May 10, 2010 By Alison Flood American free speech organisations are fighting a decision by a New [...]

U.S. Supreme Court hearing two free speech cases as preludes to same-sex marriage case

Two cases currently before the Supreme Court will set the First Amendment ground rules for the debate on same-sex marriage. The case heard this week concerns a Christian legal group at a California law school who wants to bar gays from their membership, a prohibition that the school says violates their nondiscrimination policy. Plaintiffs in [...]

Supreme Court hears arguments in Christian group suit against state university law school

The U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments in a case pitting a Christian Legal Society barring gay students against the law school that requires campus groups to admit all students regardless of status or beliefs. Much of the sessions dwelled on whether the university nondiscrimination policy applied evenly to all groups and was “viewpoint neutral.” -db [...]

Opinion: Mississippi school violates prom-goer’s First Amendment rights

The New York Times applauds the federal court decision against a Mississippi school district that prevented a senior girl from attending the prom with her girlfriend as a gay couple. The judge ruled that the district violated the senior girl’s First Amendment right of self-expression and also her right to send the message that women [...]

Law school groups back Hastings in discrimination case

University of California’s Hastings College of Law has gained the support of several law groups in its case before the Supreme Court scheduled for argument on April 19. The school’s Christian Legal Society brought suit to operate on campus with a policy that excludes gays and lesbians. -db The National Law Journal March 22, 2010 [...]

Mississippi school stressed over idea of gays at prom

A Mississippi high school could not legally ban a gay couple from the prom so it just cancelled the event altogether. With the help of the ACLU, the student who wanted to invite a girlfriend to the prom is suing the school for violating her First Amendment rights to freedom of expression. -db ACLU Opinion [...]

Internet raises stakes in cases pitting public disclosure against right to privacy

In Doe v. Reed, the U.S. Supreme Court will weigh the right to privacy under the First Amendment’s protection of freedom of speech and association against the need for open government and transparency in public elections. -DB First Amendment Center Commentary January 19, 2010 By Tony Mauro WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Supreme Court has agreed [...]

Washington: Federal judge rejects plea by anti-gay marriage PAC to suspend campaign finance laws

Seatlle Post Intelligencer October 27, 2009 By Chris Grygiel Family PAC said the campaign finance laws were hampering their ability to collect contributions before the November 3 election on Referendum 71 extending domestic partnership rights for gay couples. The law limits donations to small contributions in the last weeks before the election which according to [...]

SLAPPs can shield those committing hate crimes

In light of a hate crime case involving a student at the private Harvard-Westlake School, a professor argues that SLAPP suits can force those seeking redress to endure costly legal expenses hurting their chances for a just settlement. -DB Gay and Lesbian Times Commentary September 3, 2009 By Robert Dekoven The California Legislature needs to exempt [...]