Nayeli Quiroz

Ms. Schaefer

H. US History, Period 6

7 October 2016

The Loss of our First Amendment Rights

The first amendment rights otherwise known as the freedoms of expression, including the

freedom of speech, religion, assembly and press. These rights are stated in the Constitution,

“​Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free

exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people

peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances,”​ but do

americans still fully withhold these rights?

According to CNN politics, an article states, February 2015, Samantha Elauf, a 17 year

old American-Muslim, was stressing about an upcoming interview with a sales job at retailer

Abercrombie and Fitch. She wore a headscarf in regards to her Muslim faith. Elauf sat with the

assistant manager, Heather Cooke for her interview, throughout the process the headscarf nor her

religion occurred in the conversation. An employer conducting an interview has certain store

regulations that an employee must know for further reference while working. Cooke mentioned

the “look policy” the store required while on shift, she stated employees shouldn't wear a lot of

makeup, black clothing or nail polish. Ultimately, Samantha failed to get the job. Although the

17-year-old was qualified in the eyes of Cooke, the district manager thought otherwise because

of her headscarf. The manager simply said she should not be hired because the headscarf was

inconsistent of the “look policy” of the company. Although, it is clearly insinuated that the

headscarf played no role in the company’s look policy.

 According to an article from the Foundation of Individual rights in Education, a

California University student sued the school he was attending for violating his freedom of

speech. Nicholas Thomas, a 24-year-old student at Cal Poly Pomona began to distribute posters

that showed his commitment to his vegetarian lifestyle and exposing industrial farming practices.

Cal Poly did not agree with his distribution of posters. The school put a rule towards the student

stating: Thomas has to be 154 square-feet of range to distribute his flyers and had to wear a

badge indicating he was authorized to speak. A ​student​ at a ​public​ university should not have to

wear a badge to express oneself.

An article on ifex.org, titled “Police actions in Ferguson, U.S interfere with freedoms of

assembly, press,” states how a protest erupted in Ferguson after an police shoots and kills

Michael Brown an unarmed 18 year-old. Many media outlets have reported the protest as

“largely peaceful,” but police have responded with threatening measures. This includes the

unnecessary use of tear gas and detaining journalists covering the event. A U.S researcher at

Human rights watch states, “They should be upholding basic rights to peaceful assembly and free

speech and not undermining them.”

Considering from the following events, it can be questioned as to whether or not we have

our first amendment rights. Not all incidents like these are reported but they happen more often

than they should.