The Controversy of Free Speech in 21st-Century America.
Description IMPORTANT: Prompt: In an MLA-formatted essay of 5-6 pages, you will examine a First-Amendment controversy in the United States. Your chosen controversy should be current – something within the past few years, ideally – and it must pertain to issues of free speech, freedom of expression, or freedom of (or from) religion. While conducting your thesis-driven examination, you must address each of the following questions: 1. What is the perceived violation of First-Amendment rights? Consider the legal definition [“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.”] instead of the often erroneous understanding of the First Amendment cited in informal banter or across the web. 2. Using research and critical reasoning, determine whether or not this issue is valid. Has there indeed been a violation of First-Amendment rights? If so, then what aspect of the law has been violated? 3. Propose a logical course of action that would adhere to the freedoms permitted by the First Amendment: is there a solution or compromise that would benefit both sides of the argument? What angles might others have failed to consider in deliberating on this specific controversy? Does this solution uphold everyone’s First-Amendment rights?