First Amendment editorials from the Freedom Forum

The National Newspaper Association is pleased to offer community newspapers the opportunity to reprint editorials that may be of interest to their readership. These editorials are provided by the staff of the NNA as well as members of the National Newspaper Association and its affiliates.

A defining moment for religious liberty in America

The angry and increasingly ugly debate over a proposed Islamic center in Lower Manhattan — misleadingly dubbed the “ground zero mosque” by the news media — raises troubling questions about the future of religious liberty in the United States.

Defending First Amendment rights is different from endorsing the message

Whether or not a Muslim community center and mosque in New York City is built near the former World Trade Center site remains to be seen.

 

Special Olympics Project Unify: Students standing up for justice

When kids begin the school day by reciting “with liberty and justice for all,” does all really mean all — including people with intellectual disabilities?

Is the tea-party movement Islamophobic?

The current wave of anti-mosque protests around the country represents a new threat to the religious freedom of Muslims in America – a threat directed not at terrorists who act in the name of Islam, but at all Muslims and Islam itself.

Court ruling questions rationale for FCC’s control of TV

What do you do when you hear foul language on television?

When the First Amendment doesn’t help, Texas will

After a yearlong legal battle, Adriel Arocha has finally won the right to attend public school wearing his hair in traditional braids — a practice his family believes is essential for expressing their faith as members of the Liban Apache tribe.

Without independent news reports, we’d know less about oil spill, McChrystal

The real value of a free press in American life is being demonstrated dramatically these days, from the Gulf of Mexico to Afghanistan and Washington, DC.

School censorship undermines what kids learn in civics

To find out how the First Amendment is supposed to work in public schools, don’t ask school officials. Ask the kids. Strange as it may seem, many students actually believe what they’re taught in civics class about their constitutional rights.

Why licensing journalists is a bad idea

Licensing journalists is an idea that surfaces from time to time. But it’s always a bad idea.

At ground zero, a blowup over a mosque

Houston talk-show host Michael Perry couldn’t contain himself. When a listener named Tony called in May 26 to defend a plan to build an Islamic center near New York City’s 9/11 ground zero, Perry exploded.