Patrick Henry (1775), a founding father of the United States, gave a speech at the Second Virginia Convention and announced his well known phrase, “Give me liberty, or give me death!” The Constitution of the United States of America, written by our founding fathers, was made to give America a set of laws to follow and to keep order throughout the country. The First Amendment to the Constitution gives the people their basic five freedoms: the freedom of speech, to petition the government, to peacefully assemble, to establish a religion, and freedom of press. The First Amendment was adopted on December 15, 1791 and was made to help Americans start their own country and break away from the British Parliament, but the freedoms that were given then, aren’t in place for the same reasons now. These five rights were given so that people can have freedom to a certain extent, but did the founding fathers write the First Amendment for it to be abused? The purpose of this paper is to inform people about our First Amendment rights, how far we can take our actions, and the how our rights came to be.
The founding fathers wrote the First Amendment to the Constitution due to their situation with the British, but our circumstances now are different than they were in the 18th century. The First Amendment was written during a time of war between the 13 colonies and the British Parliament, and when Americans wanted to break away from England and form their own country, they set rules and granted rights that England never gave them. Now, with social media being only a click away, anyone can express themselves at any time in any way. Writer, developer, speaker, and advertiser, McCormack (2016) claimed that the accessibility to social media is becoming simpler everyday and people can post their thoughts on a variety of apps. People can easily violate their freedom of speech and their actions are not protected by the First Amendment, but problems like these weren’t thought of then. Tanizaki(2013) who is a Seabury Hall senior in an “Introduction to Law” class, stated that James Madison’s original purpose for writing up the First Amendment wasn’t to let people say anything on their mind or post about people’s lives online. He wanted Americans to know that they could criticize the government without fear of being penalized or imprisoned. Before America became independent and the colonies were still part of Britain, the English would chastise and penalize people who went against government decisions. Due to these harsh conditions, when America declared its independence the founding fathers addressed issues that could improve life in a new country. The First Amendment and the Bill of Rights later on symbolized more than just the freedom to petition and go against the government’s decisions. According to Maier (2017) when the United States entered World War II, the Bill of Rights and First Amendment became big motivators for America. Maier was the William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of American History at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and writes for the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy.
A big issue regarding the First Amendment rights in present day, is that policies that were put in place back in the eighteenth century are not consistent with today’s society. Today people are burning flags and kneeling during the national anthem, and arguments have struck claiming that this is unconstitutional. Burning the American flag is protected under the First Amendment as free speech, but many people are against it. For example, our president Donald Trump wants America to join the list of sixteen countries that prohibit flag burning. To indicate the approach he wants to take, a direct quote from current president Donald Trump’s twitter says “Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag – if they do, there must be consequences – perhaps loss of citizenship or year in jail!” Countries like Argentina, Japan, and Israel prohibit the burning of their flag and are either fined or sentenced to jail or prison. There are different opinions on the burning of the flag because many people consider it one of our rights, but others believe that it is disrespectful to the country and what it stands for. As said by Davidson (2001) we pledge allegiance to the American flag because it is a symbol of our republic and the flag is used to honor our fallen soldiers and citizens. Davidson is a lieutenant colonel and a trial attorney in the Department of Justice. Although it dates back, this source is relevant and reliable because it is from the view of a lieutenant and attorney who is credible. Stone (1990) explained that in the court case Texas v. Johnson, an American flag was burned symbolizing free speech. When taken to court, it was agreed that burning the flag is a constitutional right of free speech.
Another controversy is people kneeling down during the National Anthem. This all began in the National Football League (NFL) when Colin Kaepernick, quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, knelt during the anthem before his team’s preseason games in 2016. Claims were made that if Kaepernick didn’t opt out of his contract he would be cut from his team, and now to save their team from a bad reputation no teams are signing him. Jones (2017) suggested that Democrats consider kneeling in protest during the National Anthem as freedom of speech, while Republicans see view it as offensive and rude to the country and the people who died for it. A claim stated by McNeal (2018) says that high school football players across the country shed a light on the topic when they started to imitate NFL player Colin Kaepernick and his teammate’s actions and knelt during the National Anthem. Professor Laura McNeal worked with the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard Law School since 2012 where she orchestrates national empirical legal studies that review issues of access and equity in education, employment and criminal law. McNeal is now an associate professor of law at the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law. According to Forst (2017) on October 21, 2016, Denasia Lawrence was called to sing the national anthem before the tip-off at an NBA preseason game in Miami. Lawrence is a black woman in her twenties and is a social worker, and at the time of her performance she was a student at Barry University in Miami, Florida. Lawrence knelt down while performing the National Anthem, but did not notify the organization of her intentions to kneel while performing beforehand although she planned the act prior to the event. It was her First Amendment right to kneel during the anthem to protest for black lives, but should acts like this be protected?
In conclusion, the First Amendment plays a prominent role in the daily life of any U.S. citizen and gives us our basic rights but to an extent. The history of the First Amendment and how it was brought up highly contrasts the reasons it is used for now. Based on the most reliable sources, we can comprehend that our freedoms are slightly restricted for the right reasons and to keep order throughout the United States. Our First Amendment rights symbolize the blood that was shed and the lives that were sacrificed to gain what America has now, independence.