F.2

Supreme Court cases on the Bill of Rights

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The First Amendment is a critical part of the Bill of Rights because it establishes freedom of expression for all people in the United States. There have been many Supreme Court cases about what the amendment means for freedom of speech, including the 1969 case of Brandenburg v.

Ohio.

Read the passage about the case. Then answer the question below.

In 1964, a Ku Klux Klan leader named Clarence Brandenburg spoke at a Klan rally in Ohio. He made threats toward Jewish and Black people, accused the United States government of mistreating white people, and announced a plan to march on Congress. Ohio convicted Brandenburg of advocating illegal activity under a law from 1919 and sentenced him to prison.

Brandenburg sued Ohio, arguing that his First Amendment rights had been violated. The Supreme Court ruled that the Ohio law violated Brandenburg's freedom of speech, as the government cannot prohibit speech merely for advocating illegal activity. The Court ruled that speech arguing for unlawful behavior could only be restricted if it was likely to produce actual lawbreaking.

How did Brandenburg v. Ohio affect free speech rights in the United States?

It upheld a prohibition against any public speech advocating illegal behavior.

It ruled that to be prohibited, speech had to be likely to cause unlawful activity.

It decided that free speech protections do not include offensive or unpleasant speech.

It broadly extended free speech protections to include threats of violence.