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Davis v. Beason 1882
Congress had passed the Edmunds Act in 1882, which made polygamy a felony and over 1,300 Mormons were imprisoned. The Act also required oaths requiring voters to swear they were not bigamists or polygamists. -
Debs v. United States 1919
Eugene V. Debs was an American political leader and five-time Socialist Party of America candidate for Presidency. He made an anti-war speech in Canton, Ohio, protesting US involvement in World War I. He was punish with 10 years in prison and could not participate in politics afterward. The court saw it as treason against his country and preventing the draft of soldiers into the war. Eugene's lawyer argued he was exercising his freedom of speech. -
Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization 1939
In New Jersey, Mayor Frank Hague used a city ordinance to prevent labor meetings in public places and stop the Committee for Industrial Organization's cause. He considered them "communists". The Supreme Court ruled against Mayor Hague because he violated freedom of assembly and First Amendment Rights which made ordinances void. -
McCollum v. Board of Education 1940
A public school had religious classes every day that students had to attend and one kid, James didn't go. The school coerced him to attend religious sessions. His mom sued the school for violating his right of freedom of religion. -
Bethel School District v. Fraser, 1968
A student was suspended for giving a speech at a school assembly that included indecent content. He was banned from speaking at his graduation assembly and sued the school for taking away his freedom of speech. It went to court and the school was accused of violating his first amendment rights. -
Wisconsin v. Yoder 1972
Three Amish students from three different families stopped attending school at the end of the eighth grade because of their parents' religious beliefs. The state of Wisconsin requires all kids under the age of 16 to attend school. The case went to trial and the school district was convicted of violating their freedom of religion. -
Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier, 1988
A principal removed two articles in the school newspaper that was written by the journalism class. The articles were about divorce and teen pregnancy and the principal found it objectionable. The 3 students who wrote the newspaper sued the school for taking away their freedom of speech. -
Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah 1993
Yoruba people from Africa celebrated their religion by slaughtering animals and eating them for rituals. This was a case in which the Supreme Court held that an ordinance passed in Hialeah, Florida, forbidding the unnecessary killing of an animal in a ritual or ceremony not for the purpose of food consumption was unconstitutional. The Court decided the City of Hialeah was violating their right to exercise free religion. -
Gonzales v. O Centro Espírita Beneficente União do Vegetal 2006
This is case is about a church using illegal sacramental tea containing a controlled substance for religious purposes. The Controlled Substance Act banned the use of this drug and they sued the church. The church claimed the state was violating their religious freedom rights. The state won the case because the tea/drug is illegal. -
Morse v. Frederick, 2007
A student was suspended for displaying a drug promotion banner at a school event. The principal confiscated the banner and suspended the student. The student sued the school for taking away his first amendment rights. -
Guiles v. Marineau 2007
A student in high school in Vermont wore a shirt making fun of George W. Bush and had cursory words on it. He was asked to cover it up because it violates dress code. He wore it multiple times over a few weeks and a parent complained about it. The court of appeals held that the T-shirt, in spite of its depiction of drugs and alcohol, was protected speech under the First Amendment for freedom of speech.
