ACLU Supports Terry Jones' 1A Rights

According to the Detroit News, the ACLU has a filed a brief in support of Terry Jones' First Amendment right to free speech and expression regarding his proposed protest in front of a Dearborn, Michigan mosque.

 

"The ACLU vehemently disagrees with the content of Pastor Jones' speech, but we feel equally strongly that if the First Amendment is tohave any meaning, it must mean that the government cannot suppress free speech because it, or anyone else, disagrees with that speech," ACLU Staff Attorney Jessie Rossman told The Detroit News today. "While we are not representing Pastor Jones, we filed this friend of court brief to help provide additional analysis with respect to the critical constitutional issues at stake here."

 

Jones refused to post a $1 bond (presumably on principle) after refusing to promise the court he would not hold a protest in front of the mosque. The court also tried to impose a $100,000 "peace bond" to pay for the cost of police protection if he wanted to hold his protest in front of the mosque, which runs completely contrary to Forsyth County v. Nationalist Movement, 505 U.S. 123 (1992).

Much like with the antics of Westboro Baptist Church, I don't agree with the content or the method of his protest, but I support the right to protest protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.