Freedom of speech, press, assembly and petition, and their limits
Grade 12 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Case S1 (made-up): Residents gather in a park and march to city hall with a signed letter asking the council to fix a road.
Ari reads the First Amendment and case S1. Which freedoms does the march and letter use?
- Assembly for the gathering and march, and petition for the letter
- Press for the letter, since it is a written text, and speech for the march
- Speech alone, since any expression, including a march and a letter, is just speech
- Petition for the march, and assembly for the letter that the group delivered
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Case S2 (made-up): A student prints a newsletter on a home printer and hands it out in town.
Bo reads the First Amendment and case S2. Which freedom covers the newsletter?
- Press, which covers printing and handing out written work
- Assembly, since readers who receive it may come together afterward
- Speech alone, since the amendment gives printed work no separate protection
- Petition, since a newsletter asks readers to think or act in some way
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Case S3 (made-up): A protester stands silently on a sidewalk holding a sign.
Esme reads the First Amendment and case S3. Is a silent sign covered by the freedom of speech?
- Just as assembly, since the protester is standing in a public place
- No; speech means spoken words, so a silent sign has no protection
- Yes; speech reaches silent signs and symbols as well as spoken words
- Yes, and so no government may ever limit where or when a sign is held
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Schenck v. United States (1919), quoted: "The most stringent protection of free speech would not protect a man in falsely shouting fire in a theatre and causing a panic."
Jun reads the First Amendment and the Holmes sentence. What does the sentence show about "no law"?
- The freedom has no limits, since the example shows an extreme case
- The freedom covers just true statements, so any false statement may be punished
- The freedom has limits; speech that causes immediate harm may be punished
- The limit applies solely inside theaters, since the sentence names no other place
Sullivan quote (from New York Times v. Sullivan, 1964)
"debate on public issues should be uninhibited, robust, and wide-open, and that it may well include vehement, caustic, and sometimes unpleasantly sharp attacks on government and public officials." Case S5 (made-up): At a public meeting a resident harshly criticizes the mayor's budget.
Kira reads the Sullivan quote and case S5. Is the resident's harsh criticism of the mayor protected?
- Yes; harsh criticism of officials is part of protected public debate
- Yes, but solely if the mayor agrees to hear the criticism that is offered
- No; a meeting held in a government building is outside the First Amendment
- No; harsh words about an official are insulting, and insults may be banned
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Fourteenth Amendment note (our words): After 1868, courts apply the First Amendment to state and local governments too, not only to Congress. Case S6 (made-up): A private newspaper declines to print a reader's letter.
Luz reads the First Amendment and case S6. Is a private newspaper declining a letter a First Amendment violation?
- No; the amendment limits the government, and a newspaper's choice is its own
- Yes; press freedom means a paper must print what readers send
- Yes, since a newspaper serves the public and the public has a speech right
- No, because letters are not speech and have no protection of any kind
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Fourteenth Amendment note (our words): After 1868, courts apply the First Amendment to state and local governments too, not only to Congress.
Noah reads the First Amendment and the Fourteenth Amendment note. A state legislature passes a speech ban, and the text names Congress. Can it be challenged?
- No; the amendment names just Congress, so states may pass any speech law
- Yes; courts apply the First Amendment to the states through the Fourteenth
- Yes, but solely in Congress, which must review each state speech law
- Yes, but just the state's own constitution may limit the state legislature
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Student note (made-up): "Free speech means nobody may disagree with me."
Tala reads the First Amendment and note S10. What is wrong with the student's claim?
- Nothing; the amendment protects speakers from each reply, including from neighbors
- It is backwards; the amendment protects the listeners and not the speakers
- The amendment says nothing about disagreement, so it protects no speaker
- The amendment limits what government may do; others may still disagree
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Student note (made-up): "Only newspapers have freedom of the press."
Zee reads the First Amendment and note S11. What does the amendment's wording show?
- The note is right, since the amendment does not mention newsletters
- Press freedom covers publishing like the newsletter, not just big newspapers
- The note is right, since just organizations that employ reporters can claim it
- The note is wrong, since press freedom belongs to speakers, not publishers
First Amendment (quoted)
"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." Case S12 (made-up): A group delivers a petition with 500 signatures to the council. The council does not do what the petition asks.
Ren reads the First Amendment and case S12. Was the right to petition violated when the council did not do what the petition asked?
- Yes; ignoring a petition abridges the freedom of the press
- No; the right is to ask the government, not to get the answer wanted
- No, but solely because the petition was not written by a lawyer for the group
- Yes; a right to petition means the council must grant what the petition asks