The right to be heard has its limits. A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against a North Carolina man who said that an Asheville noise ordinance violated his First Amendment right to be heard outside a Planned Parenthood clinic. In 2021, Asheville passed a ban on “amplified sound” for 150 feet outside medical facilities and schools. Zachary Hebb, who has been protesting outside the clinic since 2019, says the law stops him from using a cone or amplifier to talk to patients entering the clinic. Hebb’s attorney, Nate Kellum, of the First Liberty Institute, called the ruling “flat wrong” and says the ordinance “flatly bans amplified pro-life speech.” But the panel found that the ordinance was content-neutral, narrowly tailored to serve the city’s interest, and left Hebb with other means of communication like passing out pamphlets or holding signs. Kellum says he and Hebb are considering requesting a rehearing by the full appeals court.
More from Freedom Forum: ‘What Are Time, Place and Manner Restrictions?’
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French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte are suing podcaster Candace Owens for repeatedly claiming that Brigitte Macron could be a man. The Macrons’ defamation and false light lawsuit, filed in Delaware Superior Court, alleges Owens has posted numerous videos on her YouTube channel about Brigitte Macron, including one titled “Is France’s First Lady a Man?” and a multipart series called “Becoming Brigitte.” Owens has also sold merchandise promoting the claim.
Tom Clare, an attorney for the Macrons, says Owens has waged a “relentless year-long campaign” against the couple, who asked her to stop before filing their lawsuit.
In response to the Macrons’ legal action, Owens has doubled down, saying on a recent podcast episode, “If you need any more evidence that Brigitte Macron is definitely a man, it is just what is happening right now. The idea that you would file this lawsuit is all of the proof that you need.”
The Macrons are seeking punitive damages against Owens and her businesses.
More from Freedom Forum: ‘When Spreading Falsities Goes Too Far: False Light Explained’
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New York has agreed to pay a Christian wedding photographer $225,000 in attorneys’ fees to settle a dispute over state antidiscrimination laws that the photographer says violate her religious freedom rights. In 2021, Emilee Carpenter filed a federal lawsuit challenging the laws, saying they could force her to serve same-sex couples, which would go against her religious beliefs. A federal court dismissed the lawsuit later that year. Then, in 2023, Carpenter revived her case after the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling in favor of a graphic design business challenging a Colorado antidiscrimination law on religious freedom grounds.
Bryan Neihart of Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented Carpenter, hailed the agreement in a statement, saying, “The U.S. Constitution protects Emilee’s freedom to express her own beliefs as she continues to serve clients of all backgrounds and beliefs. New Yorkers can now enjoy the freedom to create and express themselves, a freedom that protects all Americans regardless of their views.”
More from Freedom Forum: ‘Can You Be Required to Speak? Compelled Speech Explained’
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An Indiana woman was temporarily banned from her daughter’s school after she recorded a meeting with the principal and posted it online. Last year, Nicole Graves requested a meeting with Indian Springs Middle School principal Wesley Mullett after her daughter reported an incident on her school bus, which the school hadn’t informed Graves about. Graves said she recorded the meeting to have an accurate account of what was said. She left the meeting unsatisfied with the conversation and later posted the recording to social media. Graves was then disciplined for violating a Whitley County school district policy that bars recording meetings without a building administrator’s permission. Graves is no longer banned from the school, but the Goldwater Institute, an Arizona think tank, says the school violated her First Amendment free expression rights and is asking the school district to rescind the recording policy.
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For decades, Carnegie Mellon University has displayed “The Fence,” a key landmark for free expression on campus. Earlier this month, President Donald Trump attended an energy summit at the Pittsburgh college, and in the days before his visit, some students used The Fence to express their displeasure. After one post referenced sexual assault, CMU President Farnam Jahanian said the message had “crossed a line — not because of its viewpoint, but because of its personal, unaccountable nature, which undermined the spirit of civil discourse.” The school whitewashed The Fence and closed it to students for the first time in its history. But that didn’t stop students from crafting an improvised protest. Stephanie Strasburg and Maddy Franklin from Pittsburgh’s Public Source covered the recent controversy and talked to students about the state of free speech on their campus.
More from Freedom Forum: ‘Protesting on College Campuses: FAQs Answered’
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“You're an interesting species. An interesting mix. You're capable of such beautiful dreams, and such horrible nightmares. You feel so lost, so cut off, so alone, only you're not. See, in all our searching, the only thing we've found that makes the emptiness bearable, is each other.”
— Alien/Ted Arroway in “Contact” (1997)
It’s summertime! And chances are, you want to catch the blockbusters landing in movie theaters. Or maybe you’re escaping the heat by staying in and streaming instead? Either way, we have some summer viewing recommendations for you! Pick a flick from one of our lists of must-watch movies with stories rooted in our freedoms of religion, speech, press, assembly and petition.
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