By and 8-1 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court has upheld our right of free speech, even if it is hateful speech. Have at it Reverend, it is your right. But if you believe you are going to be greeted by a chorus of angels singing your praises when you die, I suspect you are mistaken.
Resolution is easy, we just go 'packing' to such funerals. I suspect we have many 'protesters' of this type I'd be just thrilled to put down.
ReplyDeleteNo, Patrick, we do not need more violence. There's enough already.
ReplyDeleteMany commentators overlook the fact that the SCOTUS decision applies only to that particular incident. They'll have to go to court again and again. The Supremes will get tired of their "broken record."
Jay...doesn't this decision set precedent though? People can keep suing if they want, but the bar has been moved for blocking hate speech, no?
ReplyDeleteI'm not a lawyer, so this is above me. And I'll guess it does set a precedent.
ReplyDeleteThere's a similar situation in KKK rallies. They have the right to assemble and spew their venom, but you don't have to be there. The KKK folks get tired of talking to a non-audience.
I like what the Mayor of Cleveland did some years ago. He was a Black man. The city lawyers said that a permit had to be granted.
So, barricades were set up to keep the "audience" far away from the speechifiers. Pro and anti groups were separated. (There were only a few on each side.)
When the KKK folks came to Cleveland they were met at the city line and given a police escort. They were given a room to don their bedsheets and pillowcases, IN THE JAIL, under the watchful eye of scores of unsmiling police officers, many whom were black.
Positioned between the KKK folks and the audiences, police were out in force, staring down the KKK. After a little while the KKK quit. The police took them back to the jail where they changed into their civvies. Then the police escorted them to the city line.
The KKK never showed up again.