By: Diane Benjamin

Last November the Springfield City Council violated the rights of a citizen during public comment. Review this story: https://blnnews.com/2024/11/14/did-the-springfield-city-council-violate-civil-rights/

The American Center for Law and Justice is now involved. (ACLJ)

This month they sent a letter to the Springfield Council merely asking for a written apology and assurances Rosanna Pulido’s 1st Amendment Rights will not be violated in the future.

Maybe national embarrassment will help Springfield do the right thing: https://aclj.org/free-speech/illinois-city-council-bans-trump-shirt-in-blatant-violation-of-the-first-amendment

Excerpts:

At the ACLJ, we are unwavering in our commitment to defending the constitutional liberties that form the bedrock of our nation. Recently, we took a bold step in protecting the First Amendment rights of Ms. Rosanna Pulido, a resident of Springfield, Illinois, who faced outrageous restrictions on her freedom of expression at a city council meeting.

T-Shirts Are Non-Disruptive Speech

One of our first Supreme Court cases was our unanimous victory in Airport Commissioners v. Jews for Jesus, when Chief Counsel Jay Sekulow convinced all nine Justices that the state could not regulate non-disruptive speech like T-shirt slogans. Nearly 40 years later, some officials are still trying to tell people that they can’t express their opinions.

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If the Demand Letter and public embarrassment don’t result in a written apology and future assurances, the ACLJ will sue. Springfield residents will get the bill if a lawsuit has to be filed.

Note: The ACLJ is doing the job the ACLU used to do but no longer does.

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