Blatantly unconstitutional.
You guys cherry pick from the constitution
Court: First Amendment protects profanity against police
from Republicans—
that would criminalize one of the most fundamental rights in American democracy, to dissent against the government.
The bill that the Kentucky Senate passed last week makes it a misdemeanor
to taunt a police officer, with words or gestures, "that would have a direct tendency to provoke a violent response from the perspective of a reasonable and prudent person." In the past, state jurists and the U.S. Supreme Court have cited the 1st Amendment in finding that
it's not a crime to say rude things or even curse at a police officer, but now the Bluegrass State is saying that if you flip the bird at a cop and he tries to bash in your skull, the whole thing was your fault.
the Kentucky scheme is just the most extreme example of a flurry of bills meant to criminalize your right to air your grievances against the government.
A bill in Oklahoma, for example, would protect drivers who plowed their car into a crowd of protesters and make it illegal to post information about law-enforcement officers online which, as critics noted, might criminalize videos like the ones that showed the world what happened to George Floyd.
lawmakers are using false narratives about protests, which have been overwhelmingly peaceful, to pass laws they hope will make many folks including ones who seek to protest police violence, white supremacy or climate change to simply stay home. Just like many of these same Republican legislators
want to use the Big Lie about 2020 election fraud that never happened to pass laws in the hopes that many voters will also stay home. Citizens in the affected states need to get out and fight these anti-democratic measures—while they still can.
Citizens in the affected states need to get out and fight these anti-democratic measures—while they still can.
www.commondreams.org