Free Speech & Religious Speech
They say that bad cases make bad laws and the Bong Hits for Jesus kid is a nearly perfect example. Yes, his signage was rude, disrespectful and meant to annoy. It succeeded on all counts. But here’s the problem. This case did not line up with the usual suspects fighting each other.
You see what was at stake wasn’t simply free speech but the ability of schools and government to regulate religious speech. The narrow question was whether this kid’s right of religious expression could be abridged by the schools. Some very non-liberal religious groups lined up on the side of the kid’s rights, but certainly not the content.
For example: The American Center for Law & Justice (founded by Pat Robertson), Liberty Legal Institute and the very conservative Rutherford Institute. They objected to the tone of the protest but filed amicus briefs to protect religious speech from being labeled as disruptive and banned.
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