First Amendment Quotes

“The very purpose of the First Amendment is to foreclose public authority from assuming a guardianship of the public mind.”

“It is the very purpose of the First Amendment to foreclose public authority from assuming a guardianship of the public mind.”

“The First Amendment is not a partisan issue.”

“In the world of the First Amendment, the viewing public is the ultimate judge.”

“It is a central tenet of the First Amendment that the government must remain neutral in the marketplace of ideas.”

“The notion that the government can't withhold information from the public is a First Amendment principle.”

“It pains me to say this, but in certain quarters, religious liberty is fast becoming a disfavored right.”

“Forcing free and independent individuals to endorse ideas they find objectionable is always demeaning.”

“The very purpose of the First Amendment is to foreclose public authority from assuming a guardianship of the public mind.”

“No law means no law.”

“In the First Amendment, the Founding Fathers gave the free press the protection it must have to fulfill its essential role in our democracy.”

“The word 'security' is a broad, vague generality whose contours should not be invoked to abrogate the fundamental law embodied in the First Amendment.”

“An unconditional right to say what one pleases about public affairs is what I consider to be the minimum guarantee of the First Amendment.”

“Fear of serious injury cannot alone justify suppression of free speech and assembly.”

“If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.”

“Sex and obscenity are not synonymous.”

“The dissemination of ideas can accomplish nothing if otherwise willing addressees are not free to receive and consider them. It would be a barren marketplace of ideas that had only sellers and no buyers.”

“The door of the Free Exercise Clause stands tightly closed against any governmental regulation of religious beliefs as such.”

“The mere fact that speech is accompanied by conduct does not mean that the speech can be suppressed under the guise of prohibiting the conduct.”

“If there is a bedrock principle underlying the First Amendment, it is that the government may not prohibit the expression of an idea simply because society finds the idea itself offensive or disagreeable.”