Not ‘Free Speech’
#Last summer, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Texas division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans who wanted a state-issued license plate design (which Mississippi offers). The Court ruled that the state was not required to issue special Confederate license plates because they are considered government speech. This decision actually hurts Moore’s case, Steffey says, because it made clear that government expression is free from First Amendment free-speech rules.
#In the majority opinion in the case, Walker v. Sons of Confederate Veterans, Justice Stephen Breyer wrote, “Government statements do not normally trigger the First Amendment rules designed to protect the marketplace of ideas.”
In Texas this meant that the government could bar Confederate symbols; in Mississippi this could mean it can keep them. Justice Breyer’s opinion did reiterate, however: “That is not to say that a government’s ability to express itself is without restriction. Constitutional and statutory provisions outside of the Free Speech Clause may limit government speech.”
#Moore is ready and willing to fight and says he expects justice at the end of the day.
#“All the other southern states have seen the light—Mississippi can’t seem to get it, but we’re trying to help them see and understand that that’s not acceptable,” Moore said. “No civil rights have been advanced in Mississippi without federal intervention, so we expect the federal government to protect us in this instance.”
#For more visit jfp.ms/slavery.
Article Appeared @http://www.jacksonfreepress.com/news/2016/mar/02/lawsuit-change-flag-uphill-battle-it-could-work/