First Amendment Watch • July 27 2023

Texas Atheist Organization Files First Amendment Lawsuit Against Fort Worth, Claims Viewpoint Discrimination

A North Texas nonprofit organization, Metroplex Atheists, filed a lawsuit July 17 against the city of Fort Worth after its application for promoting an event about Christian Nationalism on lamppost banners downtown was denied. The group claims the city discriminated against its viewpoint and violated its First Amendment rights to freedom of speech and religion.

First Amendment Watch • July 25 2023

Tennessee Student Sues After Suspension for Off-Campus Memes

A Tennessee public high school student sued his school July 18 after he was suspended for posting memes ridiculing his principal, claiming the disciplinary action violated his First Amendment rights.

First Amendment Watch • July 7 2023

Concerns Raised On Judge’s Injunction Against Government Communications with Social Media Platforms

A federal judge in Louisiana granted a preliminary injunction July 4 blocking the Biden administration and key government agencies from communicating with major social media platforms about user content the sites host — a ruling which could result in major First Amendment implications.

First Amendment Watch • June 30 2023

Supreme Court Sides with Colorado Web Designer in Anti-Discrimination Free Speech Case

The Supreme Court sided with a Colorado web designer June 30 who argued her freedom of expression was violated by the state’s anti-discrimination law requiring her to create marriage websites for same-sex couples.

First Amendment Watch • June 29 2023

Supreme Court Clarifies Test on Proving ‘True Threats’ Under the First Amendment

The Supreme Court brought new clarity to the First Amendment standard that applies to “true threats” on June 27 in the case of a Colorado man who sent thousands of harassing messages to a musician, requiring prosecutors to prove that a defendant was reckless.

First Amendment Watch • June 28 2023

Supreme Court Upholds Law Criminalizing ‘Encouragement’ of Illegal Immigration

The Supreme Court ruled June 23 that a federal law which criminalizes the encouragement of illegal immigration does not infringe on free speech rights.

First Amendment Watch • June 23 2023

Federal Judge Rules Utah City Violated First Amendment by Denying Drag Show Permit

A Utah-based drag show group will be permitted to host an all-ages drag show at a public park in the city of St. George, a federal judge ruled June 16, stating the city discriminated against the group and its protected speech.

Delaware Currents • June 20 2023

Report: Climate change will bring a foot-plus rise in the Delaware River in Philadelphia

Climate change is expected to drive a rise of the Delaware River by more than a foot over the next 25 years, as the greater Philadelphia region faces more extreme heat days and increased flooding in some areas, a recent report warns.

First Amendment Watch • June 16 2023

Pentagon Papers Whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg Dies at 92

Daniel Ellsberg, the whistleblower best known for sharing the Pentagon Papers to the New York Times in 1971, who dedicated his life to protecting press freedoms and standing against prior restraints, died June 16 at 92 from pancreatic cancer.

First Amendment Watch • June 15 2023

Ousted Philadelphia Police Officers Can Pursue First Amendment Retaliation Lawsuit, Third Circuit Rules

A dozen Philadelphia police officers who sued the city after they were disciplined and fired for offensive Facebook posts can pursue their First Amendment lawsuit against the city, a federal appeals court ruled June 8.

First Amendment Watch • June 8 2023

Libel Lawsuit Filed in Georgia Against ChatGPT Parent Company OpenAI

A Georgia talk-show radio host sued OpenAI, the company that owns ChatGPT, for libel June 5 after the artificial intelligence chat bot shared false information about the host to a journalist.

First Amendment Watch • June 6 2023

Supreme Court Agrees to Hear ‘Trump Too Small’ Trademark Case

The Supreme Court decided June 5 to hear a California attorney’s case in which he requested to trademark the phrase “Trump too small.” The insult was initially made by Florida Senator Marco Rubio during the 2016 presidential campaign in which he said former President Trump had “small hands … And you know what they say about guys with small hands.”

First Amendment Watch • June 5 2023

Tennessee’s Anti-Drag Law is ‘Unconstitutionally Vague,’ Federal Judge Rules

A federal judge found Tennessee’s anti-drag law unconstitutional June 2, ruling it violates the First Amendment right to freedom of speech.

First Amendment Watch • June 2 2023

Three Laws Signed by DeSantis at the Center of Florida’s Surge in Book Bans

Book bans have been surging across the country, but in Florida, school boards across the state have been purging their shelves following the direction of Gov. Ron DeSantis.

First Amendment Watch • June 1 2023

A Pair of Federal Lawsuits Claim Montana’s TikTok Ban Violates the First Amendment

TikTok and five of its Montana-based creators sued the state’s attorney general in two separate federal lawsuits challenging the state’s recently signed legislation which bans the app, claiming it violates the First Amendment.

First Amendment Watch • May 26 2023

Supreme Court Declines to Hold Tech Companies Liable for Hosted Content

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of both Google and Twitter in two separate cases May 18, finding that the tech companies can’t be held liable for content their users share on the platforms.

First Amendment Watch • May 22 2023

Trump’s Media Company Sues The Washington Post for Defamation, Requests $3.78B in Damages

Donald Trump’s media company which owns his Twitter-like platform, Truth Social, sued The Washington Post May 20 for $3.78 billion in damages, claiming a recently published article on the media company’s finances is defamatory.

First Amendment Watch • May 18 2023

DeSantis Defunds Diversity and Inclusion Programs in Florida Public Higher Education

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation May 15 that defunds diversity, equity and inclusion, (DEI), programs at the state’s public colleges and universities, as well as limits discussions of racism and sexism in required courses and student activities.

First Amendment Watch • May 17 2023

PEN America Sues Florida School District Over Book Bans

PEN America, along with Penguin Random House, select authors and parents of children enrolled in Florida’s Escambia County School District filed a federal lawsuit against the district and its board May 17 requesting banned books and those under review be returned to library shelves.

First Amendment Watch • May 15 2023

Disney Sues DeSantis Claiming Retaliation for Denouncing Florida’s ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill

Disney sued Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis April 26, claiming the governor and the legislature “orchestrated” a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company issued a public statement opposing the Parental Rights in Education bill, widely dubbed the “Don’t Say Gay” bill.