Speech and Religion
The First Amendment’s guarantee of freedom of speech, religion, the press, assembly, and petition are also embedded in analogous provisions in state constitutions. In many states, these provisions are worded differently than the First Amendment and may not be grouped into a single provision. Many states have also adopted Religious Freedom Restoration Acts, which provide added protections for religious freedoms. It is not uncommon for states to provide broader protections than the U.S. Constitution for the press, commercial speech, artistic expression, religious freedom, and other rights.
Speech, religion, and assembly rights can also be implicated in other categories of cases, such as challenges to restrictions on voting or abortion, or lawsuits involving civil rights, discrimination, employment, or the rights of criminal defendants.
Filters
How Years of Legislative Maneuvering Shaped this Year’s Judicial Elections
The outcomes in races in Ohio and North Carolina will be determined in part by legislatures that altered election rules to benefit their allies.
State Justices Speak Out Against Originalism
State supreme courts are increasingly a venue for debate over history’s role in constitutional interpretation.
California’s Constitution Is For the People
One of the nation’s most influential constitutions, California’s charter protects direct democracy, limits taxation, and secures individual liberty.
Religious Freedom Claims Could Provide New Path to Protect Abortion Rights
Challenges to abortion bans by religious plaintiffs have had mixed results.
The Right to Protest and State Constitutions
Free speech protections found in state constitutions could offer broader rights to protesters than the First Amendment.
The Right to Petition in State Constitutions, Explained
Some states protect citizens’ right to make requests of or complaints against the government more broadly than the federal Constitution.
Confederate Monuments and State Constitutions
Courts considering removal of Confederate monuments have ignored southern states’ Reconstruction-era commitments to maintaining national unity and respecting racial equality.
When May a State Restrict Religious Gatherings?
A challenge to Covid-19–era limits on church services reaches the Delaware Supreme Court.