Controversy erupted over political messages being held up during a city council meeting. At issue was how city leaders responded, and whether it amounted to a free-speech crackdown.
Most of the political signs were size of a sheet of paper. When it came down to a controversial final vote, the mayor ordered the signs be put away. That request seemed unfair to many people in the audience.
The people holding signs weren't disrupting the meeting, so it is real troublesome for elected officials to be limiting their freedom of speech. According to legal experts on signs and free speech, the bottom line is that ground rules for public comment must be set ahead of time. Signs can't be singled out based on the message. That is known as "content discrimination," which the courts have ruled as unconstitutional. (KOMO4 News, July 18, 2018)
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Freedom of speech is not absolute. You shouldn't yell "Fire" in a crowded theater, unless of course there is a fire. But, when government at any level attempts to limit political speech - the expression of a political idea, or disagreement with a government action or policy - that is always a concern and a violation of the rights of the speaker (or sign holder).
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