Kayla Keith

February 28, 2017

Professor Guffey

JOMC 393-001

Midterm Exam: The First Amendment

From the beginning of time the first amendment has been one of the most important

amendments added to the U.S. 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 redress of grievances.” (U.S. Constitution - Amendment 1 - The U.S. Constitution

Online. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.usconstitution.net/xconst_Am1.html) This amendment

protects majority of the rights for people to have the freedom to express themselves in any way

they see fit. In the world we live in today this is constantly being tested and the boundaries are

always being pushed into a new direction. Based on American history it is hard not to understand

why.

As early as 1955 in the case of Emmet Till, Mamie Till, Emmet’s mother, grabbed the

amendment by the horns. She used the devastating murder of her fourteen-year-old son to show

the world the effects of the Jim Crow era that violated multiple southern states in America. He
was accused of offending a white woman one afternoon in a Mississippi general store. This led

to his treacherous murder by the women’s husband and her brother. The severity of the beating

and lynching that Till endured made him unrecognizable to anyone who knew and loved him.

Rather then suffering in silence Emmett’s mother utilized her first amendment right to get as

close to justice for her son as she could. She spoke out about the Jim Crow laws that helped her

sons’ murderers become acquitted of all charges pertaining to his death. And the biggest gesture

of all was her decision to have an open casket funeral for her son despite his gruesome

appearance. Big named magazines like Jet printed the photos taken at his funeral and published

them nationwide. This bringing light to the injustices of not only the adult population of African-

Americans but also to their children. She spoke on multiple TV and radio shows advocating that

the rights of people of color had to be justified fairly, just as white peoples were. Mamie Tills

exercise of her first amendment right eventually led to the bringing fourth of Dr, Martin Luther

King Jr., one of the biggest names in association to the civil rights movement. (Ray, M. (2019,

February 06). Emmett Till. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/biography/Emmett-Till)

Having the right to express yourself and not be censored is one of the main promises

stated in the first amendment. In the case of Emmett Till they did not stop his mother from

speaking her truth and the truth of her son at all. They even went as far as allowing the disturbing

picture of his mangled face to be plastered all across America. Without this happening several

civil rights events and leaders may not have taken place or come forward.
 A more recent case that toke place in Chester Basin Canada happened when nineteen-

year-old William Swinimer wore a t-shirt to school that said “Life is wasted without Jesus” to his

High School and he was suspended. The super intendent of the counties school system, Nancy

Pynch-Worthylake, came out and said that Swinimer was not suspended because of the saying on

his shirt but because of complaints that were accumulating from fellow students because of the

saying. Pynch- Worthylake then went on to say that the belief that school was an anti-religion

zone was an assumption but certainly was not true. This raised several questions about the nature

of the Canadian school system because if this was something that was not frowned upon by the

administration then William Swinimer should not have been suspended for said “complaints”.

The school board took a stand in front of the media to show that they stranded with William and

his family that this in deed was a violation of his first amendment right, even though he was

given multiple in school detentions that lead up to the five-day suspension. This went against the

first amendment because it did not only try to stop him from his freedom of speech but also

freedom of religion. Despite what other students might have felt regarding William Swiminer’s

shirt they had no right to try and silence his opinion. it was done in a way that was not offensive

and was being blatant or rude. The students did not have to agree with what his shirt said and did

not even have to read it. It was on his person and at most the administration should have just

asked him to put on a jacket. (Gryboski, M., & Christian Post. (2012, May 05). Canadian student
suspended over Jesus T-shirt. Retrieved from

https://www.christiantoday.com/article/canadian.student.suspended.over.jesus.tshirt/29821.htm)

The first amendment can be something very tricky if not completely understood by all

parties though. For example, the happening in Washington D.C. between the Catholic school boy

and the Native American Veteran that toke place earlier this year was freedom of speech but not

agreed upon by all parties. When the video surfaced of a Catholic high school student facing off

with a native American veteran the country went crazy. From the look of the video the veteran

was inches away from the face of the student beating a drum and chanting while the student

stood firm smirking while his class mates stood behind him laughing and mocking the native

American man’s chant. Many people were controversial on the nature of the encounter because

of course there are two sides to every story. The student says he was approached by the veteran

after they had just had an encounter with a black Israelite group who were yelling at them

because of the Make America Great Again attire they had purchased while in D.C. the student’s

arrogance was greatly over looked because he was exercising his first amendment right with

what he wore and how he was standing his ground. When approached by the veteran the student

did not block him but stood to the side and stared at the man while he chanted what was later

found out to be a chant of peace because the students had gotten into a verbal altercation with

another group that was protesting on the national mall. Despite their behavior many people felt

that the students were being attacked because of their Make America Great Again attire,
knowing many people do not agree with Trump’s doings in office, they were just taking out all

their disagreements on the children. Many people over look the catholic students’ parts in this

altercation because that did not physically do anything to retaliate against the opposing groups

but simply stood behind their first amendment right to express themselves in a peaceful manner.

(Ortiz, J. L. (2019, January 24). Fuller video casts new light on Covington Catholic students' encounter

with Native American elder. Retrieved from

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2019/01/20/covington-catholic-students-full-video-shows-viral-

protest-new-light/2635085002/)

Even thought the first amendment is one of the most important amendments in the U.S.

constitution there are still several factors that remain unclear. Like when can it be applied and

when it can not be, is there and age limit, or even a limit on race. The first amendment has

brought us far in the media and as a country, but it still has a lot more left to be discovered

behind it.