Balkin– First Amendment Spring 2018 Syllabus

 
The First Amendment

Spring Semester 2018

 
Note: Unless otherwise noted, all references to page numbers refer to Stone, Seidman, Sunstein, Tushnet and Karlan, The First Amendment (5th ed. 2016).

Part I– Religious Liberty

 

1. The Establishment Clause

  • Everson v. Board of Education and Notes, pp. 539-542
  • Note on history of the Religion Clauses, pp. 542-549
  • Note on general approaches to the Religion Clauses, pp. 549-556
  • Note on Defining Religion, pp. 556-560
  • Lemon v. Kurtzman, p. 561
  • Notes and Lee v. Wiseman, pp. 562-574

2. School Prayer, Public Displays and De Facto Establishments

3. Government Aid to Religious Institutions

  • Notes and Muller v. Allen, pp. 600-607
  • Note on cases from Aguillar to Mitchell, pp. 607-613
  • Zelman v. Simmons-Harris and Notes, pp. 613-622

4. The Free Exercise Clause

5. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act

6. Permissible Accommodations of Religion

  • Note and Corporation of Presiding Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. Amos, pp. 645-651
  • Texas Monthly v. Bullock and Notes, pp. 651-652
  • Board of Education of Kiryas Joel School District v. Grumet and Notes pp. 652-654
  • Notes on accommodation of religion, pp. 654-658
  • Note on Free Exercise, Free Speech, and the Right of Expressive Association, pp. 659-664
  • Robin Wilson, Summary of the Utah Compromise

Part II– Freedom of Speech– Content Regulation

7. Introduction to Freedom of Speech; Seditious Advocacy

A. Theories of Freedom of Expression

  • Brandenburg v. Ohio and Notes, pp. 56-61

  • Notes on the history of the first amendment, pp. 3-8
  • Notes on the philosophy of free expression, pp. 8-16
  • Abrams v. United States and Notes, pp. 29-35
  • Gitlow v. New York and Notes, pp. 35-39
  • Whitney v. California and Notes, pp. 40-46
  • Dennis v. United States and Notes, pp. 46-56
  • Note on the Brandenburg formulation, pp. 59-61
  • Balkin, Cultural Democracy and the First Amendment

8. Seditious Advocacy and Terrorism

 9. Fighting Words and Threats

A. Fighting Words and the Hostile Audience

  • Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire and Notes, pp. 78-80
  • Notes on Fighting Words, pp. 81-84
  • Terminello v. Chicago, pp. 69-70
  • Cantwell v. Connecticut and Notes, pp. 70-71
  • Feiner v. New York and Notes, pp. 72-74
  • Note on Mechanisms of Control, pp. 74-78
  • Note on the Skokie Controversy, pp. 84-87
  • Snyder v. Phelps, pp. 87-90

B. Threats

  • Note and Bridges v. California, pp. 165-167
  • Watts v. United States, p. 167
  • Planned Parenthood v. ACLA, pp. 167-170
  • Elonis v. United States, pp. 170-171

10. Defamation and False Speech

11. Vagueness, Overbreadth, and Prior Restraint

  • Notes and Gooding v. Wilson, pp. 111-115
  • Note on Overbreadth, pp.115-119
  • Note on Vagueness, pp. 119-121
  • Note on Prior Restraint, p. 121-122
  • Lovell v. Griffin and Notes, pp. 122-127
  • Near v. Minnesota and Notes, pp. 127-129
  • Note on injunctions as prior restraints, pp. 129-132
  • New York Times Co. v. United States and Notes, pp. 90-99
  • Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart and Notes, p. 159

Additional Reading

12. Disclosure of Classified, Sensitive, and Dangerous Information

13. Pornography and Obscenity

A. Obscenity and Pornography

  • Note on Obscenity, pp. 193-194
  • Roth v. United States and Notes, pp. 194-203
  • Miller v. California, pp. 203-206
  • Paris Adult Theatre I v. Slaton and Notes, pp. 206-214
  • Note on Pornography and the Victimization of Women, pp. 280-285

B. Child Pornography

  • New York v. Ferber and Notes, pp. 214-216
  • Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coallition, pp. 216-220
  • Note on Child Pornography, p. 220

C. Cruelty to Animals

  • United States v. Stevens, pp. 220-224

14. Offensive and Indecent Speech

A. Captive Audiences

  • Cohen v. California and Notes, pp. 229-237
  • Erznoznick v. City of Jacksonville, pp. 237-238

B. Protection of Children

  • FCC v. Pacifica Foundation and Notes, pp. 238-240
  • Note on Fleeting Expletives, p. 241
  • Sable Communications v. FCC and Notes, pp. 241-242
  • Action for Children’s Television v. FCC (ACT III)
  • Reno v. ACLU, pp. 242-243
  • Ashcroft v. ACLU, pp. 243-246
  • Note on Indecent Expression, pp. 246-250

C. Violence

  • Brown v. Entertainment Merchants Association, pp. 224-228

D. Secondary Effects and Zoning of Sexually Explicit Expression

  • Note on Zoning Theaters with Adult Movies and Bars with Nude Dancing, pp. 250-254

15. Racist Speech and Harassment

  • Beauharnais v. Illinois and Notes, pp. 255-257
  • Note on Group Defamation and Hate Speech, pp. 257-263
  • Note on the Skokie Controversy, pp. 84-87
  • R.A.V. v. St. Paul, pp. 263-268
  • Wisconsin v. Mitchell and Notes, pp. 268-271
  • Virginia v. Black and Notes, pp. 271-280
  • Note on Pornography and the Victimization of Women, pp. 280-285

Additional Reading

16. What is Speech?

17. Commercial Speech

18. Privacy

Additional Reading

Part III– Regulation of Time, Place, and Manner

 
19. Time, Place and Manner Regulation

A. What is Content Neutrality?

B. Content Neutral Regulation

  • Notes and Schneider v. State, pp. 287-288
  • Martin v. City of Struthers, p. 289
  • Kovacs v. Cooper, p. 290
  • Metromedia, Inc. v. San Diego and Notes, pp. 290-292
  • City of Ladue v. Gilleo, pp. 292-293
  • Bartnicki v. Vopper, pp. 293-294
  • Note on The Search for Principles, pp. 295-296
  • Note on the meaning of content neutrality, pp. 296-301
  • Packingham v. North Carolina

20. Public, Limited and Non-Public Forums

A. The Public Forum

  • Note and Commonwealth v. Davis, pp. 301-303
  • Hague v. CIO and Notes, pp. 303-304
  • Schneider v. State and Notes, pp. 304-305
  • Notes on regulating the public forum, pp. 305-313
  • Note on devices for regulating the public forum, pp. 313-317

B. Limited Public Forums and Non-Public Forums

  • Adderley v. Florida and Notes, pp. 317-323
  • International Society for Krishna Consciousness v. Lee, and Notes pp. 323-326
  • Note on modern public forum doctrine, pp. 326-327
  • Police Department of Chicago v. Mosley and Notes, pp. 330-335
  • Lehman v. City of Shaker Heights and Notes, pp. 335-341
  • Perry Educators’ Association v. Perry Local Educator’s Association and Notes, pp. 341-343
  • Note on quintessential, designated, and non-public forums, pp. 343-347
  • Note on religious expression and the meaning of “viewpoint neutrality”, pp. 347-351
  • Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, pp. 351-355

C. Privately Owned Online Forums

Part IV– The First Amendment in the Welfare State

21. Government Speech and Government Subsidies to Speech

  • Note and Southeastern Promotions v. Conrad, pp. 355-357
  • Board of Education v. Pico and Notes, pp. 357-359
  • Regan v. Taxation with Representation and Notes, pp. 359-360
  • Rust v. Sullivan and Notes, pp. 360-366
  • NEA v. Finley, pp. 366-369
  • Legal Services Corporation v. Velazquez, pp. 369-373
  • Note on the reach of government speech, pp. 373-379 (note Walker v. Texas Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, pp. 345, 375)
  • Agency for International Development v. Alliance for Open Society International, pp. 379-383
  • Matal v. Tam

22. Freedom of Association

A. Associational Formation

  • NAACP v. Button and Notes, pp. 476-477
  • Note on Litigation and the First Amendment, pp. 478-479
  • NAACP v. Alabama and Notes, pp. 479-480
  • Talley v. California (discussion note 3), p. 315-317
  • Roberts v. U.S. Jaycees and Notes, pp. 480-481
  • Note on Association and the First Amendment, pp. 481-483
  • Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, and Notes, pp. 483-487

B. Compelled Affirmation of Belief

C. Government Employment

  • Note on Regulating the Political Activities of Public Employees, pp. 471-476
  • Note on Abridgment of Speech Other Than by Direct Criminal Prohibition (including regulation of speech and association by government employees), pp. 63-69

23. Campaign Finance

  • Buckley v. Valeo and Notes, pp. 409-422
  • Note on subsidy and disclosure, pp. 423-426
  • Note on contributions, PAC’s, and political parties, pp. 426-428
  • McConnell v. FEC (soft money issues), pp 428-431
  • Davis v. FEC, pp, 431-432
  • Arizona Free Enterprise Club’s Freedom Club Pac v. Bennett, pp. 432-435
  • Note on corporate contributions and expenditures, pp. 435-441
  • Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission, pp. 441-459
  • McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, pp. 459-468
  • Note on Additional Regulation of the Political Process, pp. 468-471
  • Bluman v. FEC

24. Telecommunications and Internet Regulation; Freedom of the Press

A. Telecommunications Regulation

B. Internet Speech