By ALIN HETT
Hays Post
The Hays Public Library hosted a lunch and learning focused on one of the most recognizable rights in the U.S. Constitution, freedom of speech.
The event was a collaboration between Hays Public Library, Tebo Library, Humanities Kansas and featured Jeffrey D. Jackson, James M. Continent Dean and professor of law at Washburn University School of Law.
Jackson joined the discussion through Zoom to talk with attendees about the First Amendment.
The First Amendment states, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
Jackson said the goal of his presentation was to give attendees a better understanding of what freedom of speech means from a constitutional perspective.
“As a constitutional law professor, I thought I would talk to you guys about what freedom of speech is, isn't and really what government controls there can be on freedom of speech,” Jackson said.
Throughout the presentation, Jackson touched on several areas of First Amendment law, including where speech takes place, how speech is expressed and what the government is attempting to regulate.
One of the major topics was the distinction between traditional public forums, limited public forums and non-public forums.
Traditional public forums include places such as public streets, sidewalks and city parks, where the government has limited ability to restrict speech.
Limited public forums, such as certain government meeting spaces, can have reasonable restrictions on the topics or manner of speech. Non-public forums include government facilities that are not generally open for public expression.
Jackson said understanding where a person is speaking can be an important part of understanding the protections that apply.
“Where are you speaking,” Jackson said, “that is, what is the venue that you have chosen for your speech?”
The discussion also moved into social media and how the First Amendment applies to platforms such as Facebook.
When an attendee asked about Facebook and the possibility of artificial intelligence affecting what users post, Jackson explained the First Amendment generally applies to government action, rather than decisions made by private companies.
“Facebook is not the government,” Jackson said, explaining the company can make decisions about its platform under its terms of service.
The example provided another look at the distinction Jackson discussed throughout the presentation between government restrictions on speech and rules established by private companies.
Jackson also briefly discussed expressive conduct, commercial speech, government employee speech and speech on school campuses.
Along with the presentation, visitors to the event were able to view a copy of the Declaration of Independence as part of the history surrounding the nation's 250th birthday.
Freedom of speech is one of the ideas at the heart of what makes the United States unique, but Jackson's presentation showed that the right is not as simple as being able to say anything, anywhere, at any time.
