The First Amendment: 7 things you need to know

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 a redress of grievances.” – The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

1
The five freedoms it protects: speech, religion, press, assembly, and the right to petition the government. Together, these five guaranteed freedoms make the people of the United States of America the freest in the world.
2
Before agreeing to accept the Constitution, the Founders of our democratic republic demanded that these freedoms be protected by an amendment to the original document – the First Amendment.
3
There’s no “legal age” you have to reach to exercise your First Amendment freedoms. They are guaranteed to you the day you’re born. There’s also no citizenship requirement for First Amendment protection. If you’re in the U.S., you have freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly and petition.
4
The First Amendment is neither “left-wing” or “right-wing.” It can be used to push for social and political change, or to oppose change. The First Amendment is for everyone.
5
The First Amendment protects us against government limits on our freedom of expression, but it doesn’t prevent a private employer from setting its own rules.
6
The First Amendment prevents government from requiring you to say something you don’t want to, or keeping you from hearing or reading the words of others (even if you never speak out yourself, you have the right to receive information).
7
Students have the right to pray in America’s public schools, as long as there’s no disruption to school operations and no government employees (teachers, coaches) are involved.

Written by Ken Paulson, director of the Free Speech Center

Looking for a general overview? Here it is, from the First Amendment Encyclopedia.

EXPLORE THE FIRST AMENDMENT ENCYCLOPEDIA

The five freedoms

Speech

What does the First Amendment say about freedom of speech? Can speech be restricted, and if so, when? In this overview, a First Amendment scholar explains what sorts of speech are protected, where free expression may be limited, and why “[f]reedom of speech is a core American belief, almost a kind of secular religious tenet, an article of constitutional faith.”

Press

How did freedom of the press come about? Are there restrictions on press freedom? The ways in which this core freedom has developed in law are explained in this overview by a First Amendment scholar. In quotations from one court ruling, “‘[F]reedom of expression upon public questions is secured by the First Amendment’” so that “‘debate on public issues should be uninhibited, robust and wide-open.’”

Religion

The First Amendment introduced bold new ideas to the world: that government must not impose a state religion on the public, or place undue restrictions on religious practice, but must recognize the right of the people to believe and worship, or not, as their conscience dictates. This First Amendment scholar’s overview makes clear the many aspects of our religious freedom, saying, “That bold constitutional experiment in granting religious freedom to all remains in place, and in progress, in the United States.”

Assembly

Our right to gather in peaceful public protest – in marches, rallies and other assemblies – is another core freedom guaranteed by the First Amendment. As a First Amendment scholar says in this overview, “First Amendment freedoms ring hollow if government officials can repress expression that they fear will create a disturbance or offend. Unless there is real danger of imminent harm, assembly rights must be respected.”

Petition

This least-known First Amendment freedom is nevertheless crucial to our democratic republic’s form of government. “Petition is the right to ask government at any level to right a wrong or correct a problem,” writes a First Amendment scholar in this overview detailing how the right of petition works in our government, and the forms it takes.

More resources

First Amendment Encyclopedia

A searchable encyclopedia with more than 1,700 articles on the First Amendment, ranging from case summaries and topical articles/

First Amendment Timeline

Trace the development of the principles leading to the adoption of the First Amendment, and developments in First Amendment jurisprudence through the years.