NCJ Number
177831
Journal
ABA Journal Volume: 85 Dated: March 1999 Pages: 42-43
Date Published
1999
Length
2 pages
Annotation
This article claims that nonpolitical issues are often slighted in First Amendment rulings by the US Supreme Court.
Abstract
The US Supreme Court struck down a series of minor regulations governing the process for putting initiatives on the Colorado ballot. However, the Court refused to hear a First Amendment challenge to a New York City anti-porn ordinance that will force approximately 84 percent of the city’s adult bookstores and X-rated entertainment spots to relocate or close their doors. The justices also refused to hear free speech challenges to laws restricting other politically unpopular activities. Political speech, on the other hand, is often a winner, even when restrictions are defended by state governments, which typically fare well before the Rehnquist Court. The article describes several decisions which have protected political speech and considers how the Court’s free-speech, free-market view in political matters stands in the way of those who seek to clamp down on campaign spending.