Document text
0 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Day of the undead: Thousands pack downtown Ashland Oregon Climate proposes carbon cost be redistributed Swing Tree Brewing Company More than health at stake in GMO debate, speakers say Police Reports Education And the winners are ... Ashland students Marketta Gregory: Stretch yourself for God Every minute counts, so make punctuality a habit Helman students illustrate kindness, love SOU's 'Count Me In' campaign raises $210,000 Environment Oregon Climate proposes carbon cost be redistributed Rite Aid cub well, could come back to southern Oregon Report: Smaller streams need further protection Bear cub wanders into Rite Aid Kalmiopsis' future at stake if mining goes forward Business Swing Tree Brewing Company Shenandoah Living Funerals Will TV makeover do the trick for Mystic Treats? Volvo V60 R-Design is all work, all play Newly renovated Ashland Hills hosts open house Politics and elections Election equipment fails, delaying ballot counting Senator Merkley brings campaign to SOU Second write-in candidate makes commission position a contest Underdog Christofferson holds out hope of upsetting Walden Aquatics backer announces write-in candidacy for Parks & Rec board State News Nation - World Obituaries Death Notices Jean Ann Haar Death Notices Death Notices Bess Hamers Sports Latest Stories Grizzlies roar into playoffs with rout of Eagles Giants do it again Grizzlies serve way into Sweet 16 Raiders move up to No. 5 in Top 25 They're twins, and they're good High school Grizzlies roar into playoffs with rout of Eagles Grizzlies serve way into Sweet 16 They're twins, and they're good Ashland mourns death of former coach Stan Gida What slump? Grizzlies drop-kick Eagles Southern Oregon University Grizzlies roar into playoffs with rout of Eagles Raiders move up to No. 5 in Top 25 No. 11 SOU volleyball team returns home for two key matches Ashland mourns death of former coach Stan Gida SOU football team falls to No. 7 in NAIA rankings Opinion Latest Stories Our View: Preparing for the worst Herb Rothschild: Tell us how they vote Granlund cartoon: Election winners Frank Talk: Power to the people Philip Maddocks: Unapologetic Christie frees God from Ebola quarantine Editorial Our View: Preparing for the worst Our View: Divestment is just a gesture Our View: Keeping the lid on Other Views: Help for Oregon's forests Our View: The Hills are alive Letters Letters to the Editor, Oct. 24 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 23 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 21 Letters to the Editor, Oct. 21 Letters to the editor Guest opinions Herb Rothschild: Tell us how they vote Guest Opinion: Oregon poised to mandate GMO labeling Guest Opinion: Three ways to take action against carbon pollution Guest Opinion: An aristocracy of the people Teaching the First Amendment Revels Latest Stories Q&A: The John Dough Boys Spookadelic Halloween Funktacular promises a lively dance party Best bets for things to do around Ashland Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas 'I'm in this for the love' Theater New plays debut at ANPF Music Best bets for things to do around Ashland The Farr Side: On ‘1989,’ Taylor Swift lightens up 'I'm in this for the love' Repertory singers prepare 'powerful' opening concert Q&A: Broken Down Guitars Visual Art Movies Movie review: ‘Nightcrawler’ delivers on creep factor Christopher and Jonathan Nolan go ‘Interstellar’ Listings for Varsity Theatre and Ashland Street Cinemas 'St. Vincent' is a revelatory experience Movie review: ‘Whiplash’ hits high notes Food and Drink Cruelest Month: Poetry Blog Lifestyle Latest Stories Woman hospitalized in Milwaukie for Ebola testing Lloyd Garver: Let the dogs out Frank Talk: Power to the people First thing to do is solve the 84th problem Kent Bush: Sometimes technology and stuff won’t save you Aging Happens Inner Peace Column Inner Peace Blog Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obituaries Photos Videos Blogs NEWS NOW Our View: Preparing for the worst ... Herb Rothschild: Tell us how they vote ... Woman hospitalized in Milwaukie for Ebola testing ... Our View: Preparing for the worst ... Herb Rothschild: Tell us how they vote ... Woman hospitalized in Milwaukie for Ebola testing ... RELOCATIONS Teaching the First Amendment DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Oct. 25, 2014 @ 12:01 am Posted Oct. 25, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Social News All of us are indebted to Dylan Bloom and the five other SOU students for challenging the university’s unconstitutional restriction on free speech. I say all of us, because it’s important that public property remain open to First Amendment exercise. So important, in fact, that if University officials haven’t embodied that principle in school policy by the time this column is published, I shall personally come onto campus and leaflet and defy arrest. As established in federal jurisprudence, the principle is simple and reasonable. Public property belongs to the public and thus is open to non-commercial speech as long as the exercise doesn’t interfere with the primary purpose of the property. We can’t go into SOU classrooms and we can’t impede traffic in the open areas and we can’t be too noisy. But any of us can stand in the open areas and express our views. Regarding the importance of this rule, I’ll quote the news release Peace House issued when we were teaching it to postal officials and the police in Central Point in 2012 (much of this was published in the Mail Tribune on October 3; the statements in single quotes were mine): “One [issue] is that those who run public agencies must obey the rules that are promulgated to govern their conduct. ‘It is unfortunate that sometimes people who are supposed to be public servants act like autocrats. When they do, they must be taught that Americans are ruled by law, not by personal dictate.’ “The other issue is the preservation of opportunities for ordinary people to espouse their views. ‘Most of us cannot afford to pay to communicate our views. Traditionally people have depended on public spaces such as sidewalks, parks, and the grounds of public facilities to distribute their printed messages. It doesn’t matter whether you are a tea partier, an Occupier, a Jehovah’s Witness, or a candidate for city council, you have a stake in asserting this crucial First Amendment right.’” Here’s the context of that news release. On Tax Day that year our volunteers distributed leaflets outside several valley post offices pointing out how much of the income tax dollar was devoted to war. Uniquely, our volunteer at Central Point was ordered off the premises under threat of arrest. In September I got around to challenging this illegal exercise of authority. First I tried to educate the officials, asking them to read their own regulations governing the matter. They refused, so I began leafleting on the walkway outside. They called the police. I explained the situation and the law to the two officers who came. They were polite and listened, but ultimately they issued me a citation for trespassing, upon which I left, as we had agreed. Jackson County District Attorney Beth Heckert refused to prosecute, being more devoted to upholding the law than supporting those in authority even when they’re wrong (which is often not the case with DAs). So I returned to the Central Point post office and leafleted unchallenged. In 1982 I spent five days in the Baton Rouge city jail teaching the postmaster there the same lesson. This past Tax Day I had to teach it to the postmistress in Phoenix. On that occasion, the police she summoned listened to me, perhaps because there was a Channel 5 camera present, and they urged her to call the USPS legal office in Portland, which told her exactly what I had tried to tell her. She wasn’t happy, but she complied. I conclude with the motto of the American Civil Liberties Union: “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.” Herb Rothschild Jr. is chairman of the board of Peace House. DailyTidings.com Writer Posted Oct. 25, 2014 @ 12:01 am » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with DailyTidings.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Alerts Email alerts RSS feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2014 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. DailyTidings.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501