Law Commons^™

John Stuart Mill And Political Correctness, Lackland H. Bloom Jr.

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

This article will examine Mill’s arguments in favor of unrestrained freedom of speech and his objection to the social censorship of speech. It will then discuss the origins and impact of what is now characterized as political correctness. The article will then define the concept of social censorship and attempt to distinguish pure social censorship from private tangible punishment of speech. Next, the article will examine the ways in which social censorship serves important social goals and promotes free speech as well as the ways in which it undermines free speech. It will especially focus on the damage to intellectual …

The Antipaternalism Principle In The First Amendment, Dale Carpenter

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

Commentators generally agree the First Amendment is hostile to paternalism. Yet, most analysts invoke the idea of free speech antipaternalism without examining its roots, explaining what it means, or discussing what it entails. There has been no attempt to identify and to explain the antipaternalism principle across a variety of free speech domains. This Article examines the nature and reach of this particular brand of First Amendment exceptionalism.

In Part I the author reviews First Amendment jurisprudence where the Supreme Court evinces, either explicitly or implicitly, some aversion to paternalism. This review covers several free speech frontiers, including commercial speech, …

Nea V. Finley: A Decision In Search Of A Rationale, Lackland H. Bloom Jr.

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

Debate has raged over whether Congress can constitutionally restrict, or at least influence, the ability of the National Endowment for the Arts (“NEA”) to award grants to artists and institutions for the creation or display of art work that a significant segment of the public would consider highly offensive. In the October 1997 Term, the Supreme Court, by an 8-1 margin in NEA v. Finley, upheld section 954(d), a 1991 congressional amendment to the NEA Act that requires the Chairperson of the NEA to ensure that, in establishing regulations and procedures for assessing artistic excellence and artistic merit, “general standards …

Barnette And Johnson: A Tale Of Two Opinions, Lackland H. Bloom Jr.

Faculty Journal Articles and Book Chapters

Among other things, the final two years of the 1980s could well be remembered as a period of patriotic symbols, especially in the area of American constitutional law. During the summer of 1988, debate in the presidential campaign turned to the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. George Bush criticized Michael Dukakis for vetoing a Massachusetts bill that would have required public school teachers to lead their students in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Dukakis defended his action by citing an advisory opinion he had requested from the Supreme Court of Massachusetts which concluded that the bill violated the first …