Free Essays on Freedom of Expression

Internet filters, v-chips, â€Å"abstinence-only† education, and indecency laws are just a few of the tactics our society has employed in recent years to protect the â€Å"innocent† minds of youth. These censorial measures not only prevent young people from learning, thinking, and exploring; they deprive them of critical information on subjects ranging from human rights and feminism to drugs and safer sex. In early May, The Free Expression Policy Project – along with the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at New School University – brought together 33 advocates from the fields of free expression, sexuality education, youth journalism, and media literacy, along with 10 outstanding teen writers and activists, for a colloquium to develop strategies for combating censorship aimed at minors. Our foremost goal was to brainstorm strategies that would empower young people by teaching them critical thinking skills, advancing their free-expression rights, and enabling them to participate effectively in the political process. By the end of the day, we’d done just that – and birthed a new movement along the way. Our colloquium commenced with an overview of the many forms of youth censorship, including Internet filters, restrictions on the student press, and abstinence- only sexuality education. As Mark Goodman of the Student Press Law Center noted, censorship of the student press has increased dramatically his organization saw a 41 percent leap in the number of reported censorship incidents between 1999 and 2000, usually for articles about sexuality or school shootings, or critiques of school policies. Even tenured newspaper advisors are coming under the fire of increasingly conservative administrators, and those who stand up for their students are beleaguered and occasionally dismissed. Some schools have cracked down on independent media as well, including zines and students’ personal websites. Susan Wilson of the Network... Free Essays on Freedom Of Expression Free Essays on Freedom Of Expression Internet filters, v-chips, â€Å"abstinence-only† education, and indecency laws are just a few of the tactics our society has employed in recent years to protect the â€Å"innocent† minds of youth. These censorial measures not only prevent young people from learning, thinking, and exploring; they deprive them of critical information on subjects ranging from human rights and feminism to drugs and safer sex. In early May, The Free Expression Policy Project – along with the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at New School University – brought together 33 advocates from the fields of free expression, sexuality education, youth journalism, and media literacy, along with 10 outstanding teen writers and activists, for a colloquium to develop strategies for combating censorship aimed at minors. Our foremost goal was to brainstorm strategies that would empower young people by teaching them critical thinking skills, advancing their free-expression rights, and enabling them to participate effectively in the political process. By the end of the day, we’d done just that – and birthed a new movement along the way. Our colloquium commenced with an overview of the many forms of youth censorship, including Internet filters, restrictions on the student press, and abstinence- only sexuality education. As Mark Goodman of the Student Press Law Center noted, censorship of the student press has increased dramatically his organization saw a 41 percent leap in the number of reported censorship incidents between 1999 and 2000, usually for articles about sexuality or school shootings, or critiques of school policies. Even tenured newspaper advisors are coming under the fire of increasingly conservative administrators, and those who stand up for their students are beleaguered and occasionally dismissed. Some schools have cracked down on independent media as well, including zines and students’ personal websites. Susan Wilson of the Network... Free Essays on Freedom of Expression Freedom of Expression: All people in the United States are guaranteed this right by the Constitution. Students, however, do not have this right to the same extent as adults. This is because public schools are required to protect all students at the school. The major aspects of this right are speech and dress. Both the right to speech and dress are not absolute in public high schools. According to the American Civil Liberties Union: "You (students) have a right to express your opinions as long as you do so in a way that doesn't 'materially and substantially' dirsupt classes or other school activities. If you hold a protest on the school steps and block the entrance to the building, school officials can stop you. They can probably also stop you from using language they think is 'vulgar or indecent'("Ask Sybil Libert" ACLU 1998). Public schools can also restrict student dress. In 1987 in Harper v. Edgewood Board of Education the court upheld "a dress regulation that required students to 'dress in conformity w it hthe accepted standards of the community'"(Whalen 72). This means that schools can restrict clothing with vulgarities and such, but they cannot restrict religious clothing: "School officials must accomodate student's religious beliefs by permitting the wearing of religious clothing when such clothing must be worn during the school day as a part of the student's religious practice"(Whalen 78). Back to Student Rights in Public High School: Bibliography: Religious Freedom: The First Amendment to the United States Constitution states, "Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." The right to freedom of religion includes the right to be free from religion: "Public schools are run by the government. Therefore, they must obey the First Amendment. This means that they can teach about the influences of religion in history, literature, and philosophy- they can't pro...