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Does The First Amendment Go Too Far Essay

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Does the First Amendment go too far in Protecting the Basic Freedoms of US Citizens? Throughout the history of the US, there have been many situations where it was important that citizens of the US have the freedoms of the first amendment. If citizens didn’t protest for change throughout history, there would be many more issues with the US than the issues and controversies we have today. When the US first became a country, the goal of the framers was to have a country that was mainly run by the people and not by a strong central government such as what they had seen with the king in Britain. In order to achieve this type of governing system, the opinions of the people need to be heard. The first amendment does not go too far in protecting citizens’ …show more content…

The citizens of the US have expressed their thoughts and concerns through free speech. This has allowed much-needed change to happen because people were able to express and defend the changes that needed to be made through the freedoms in the first amendment such as the freedoms of speech, assembly and petition. One instance of free speech being used to make changes in society was when women were finally granted the right to vote after many protests and petitions and gatherings related to passing the 19th amendment. The 19th amendment would likely have been passed much later or not at all if there hadn’t been so many people protesting and petitioning the government to pass it. “Signed into law on August 26, 1920, the passage of the 19th Amendment was the result of decades of work by tens of thousands across the country who worked for change.”(US National Park Service-19th …show more content…

The cases that are most controversial often deal with when people think that something is wrong. For example, a very heavily debated issue currently is LGBTQIA+ topics and rights and whether they should be allowed in books in schools and in schools in general, whether or not gay marriage should be legal and many other things(see more related cases in the article "Notable First Amendment Court Cases"). The first amendment isn’t going too far when it allows those who are part of the LGBTQIA+ to express themselves through their freedoms just as other people get to and not having to worry about whether their books or thoughts or who they marry will be allowed because, after all, they are people just like all every other

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