Research & Learn

- What We Do
- What we defend
- Have your rights been violated?
  If you face retaliation over protected speech, reach out to �鶹��ýIOS to learn more about how we can protect your rights.
  Submit a Case
- Make a difference
- Take Action
  Across the nation, free speech rights are under attack. Join us in defending this essential quality of liberty. Make your voice heard and join a campaign.
  Protect Free Speech
- �鶹��ýIOS Student Network
  �鶹��ýIOS’s 2022 College Free Speech Rankings are based on the voices of more than 44,000 currently enrolled students at 208 colleges and are designed to help parents and prospective students choose the right school.
  Build Your Network
- Resources
- College Free Speech Rankings
  Presented by �鶹��ýIOS and College Pulse, the 2025 College Free Speech Rankings is the largest survey of campus free expression ever performed.
- National Speech Index
  The National Speech Index is a new quarterly component of America’s Political Pulse, an ongoing weekly survey that will allow researchers to track shifting free speech sentiment in America over time.
  Learn More
Colleges
News
Cases
About Us
Submit a Case

Home
- Research & Learn
- Resources
  - Resource Library
  - Toolkits
  - Curricula
  - Issue Pages
  - Reports
  - Databases
  - Guides
  - Supreme Court Cases

Research & Learn

Explore �鶹��ýIOS's library of resources and research on free speech and other civil liberties.

Person speaking into a megaphone in the foreground and a crowd of people in the background.

57Results

Items per page:

Sort by:

Young boy shouting on a megaphone in a protest

Issue Pages

Protected Speech

The Supreme Court has consistently held the First Amendment to protect much more than mere words to include many forms of expression.

Teacher shouting holding a megaphone in a classroom

Issue Pages

Invasion of the rights of others and student speech

�鶹��ýIOS are entitled to express themselves so long as their speech does not “materially and substantially interfere” with school activities.

First Amendment and US Constitution historic documents with legal gavel

Issue Pages

The First Amendment

The First Amendment protects freedom of speech, religion, the press, assembly, and the right to petition the government and is arguably the defining factor of our American system of government.

Statue of justice with tape over the mouth and written on the tape is the word "SLAPP" meaning "Strategic Lawsuit against Public Participation"

Issue Pages

Why ‘SLAPP’ lawsuits chill free speech and threaten the First Amendment

You can’t use the legal system to punish people for speech you don’t like.

During the winter and spring of 1912, members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and their allies in labor and the community engaged in a pitched battle against a city ordinance that banned public speaking in the area around 5th and E Streets in downtown San Diego.

Issue Pages

‘All who think outside the conventional ruts’: A history of the Free Speech League

The founding of the ACLU was only possible because of a more radical group called the Free Speech League, which launched in 1902 and grew out of earlier progressive movements like abolitionism and free love.

Issue Pages

Defamation and the First Amendment

Defamation refers to false statements of fact that harm another’s reputation, including both libel and slander, and is a category of unprotected speech.

Group of children reciting pledge of allegiance to the flag in 1899

Issue Pages

The Jehovah’s Witnesses and the First Amendment

Between 1938 and 1943, the Jehovah’s Witnesses had an astonishing 30 cases before the Supreme Court that mostly expanded First Amendment liberties.

Straight on row of voting booths at polling station during American election with a US flag in background

Issue Pages

First Amendment rights at the polls FAQ

When voters know their rights, they are better prepared to evaluate political candidates, engage in debates, and advocate for their beliefs.

Want to see a magic trick? Tom Cruise impersonator Miles Fisher (left) and the deepfake Tom Cruise created by Chris Ume (right).

Issue Pages

Deepfakes, democracy, and the perils of regulating new communications technologies

Are deepfakes illegal? Read �鶹��ýIOS's answers to legal questions about deepfakes since the launch and widespread use of popular AI image-generation platforms.

Silhouette of cheering or protesting crowd with flags and banners

Issue Pages

Protesting on public property: What you need to know

Protests are a time-honored way for Americans to express their views and demand change. Here's what you need to know to make sure your expression is protected by the First Amendment.

Issue Pages

Why the 1873 Comstock Act still matters today

This explainer will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about sex in the nineteenth century, the zealot Anthony Comstock, and his law’s effect on contraception, abortion, and free speech.

March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, Martin Luther King, Jr. and Joachim Prinz pictured, 1963

Issue Pages

First Amendment freedoms developed during the Civil Rights Movement

As southern states and segregationists used their laws and courts to stifle political opponents, proponents of equal rights worked to secure many of the civil liberties we hold dear today.

Photo of �鶹��ýIOS plaintiff Susan Hogarth holding up her phone showing her ballot selfie

Issue Pages

Ballot Selfie Laws Across the United States

�鶹��ýIOS is suing members of the North Carolina State Board of Elections to overturn multiple unconstitutional laws banning photos of official ballots, or “ballot selfies.”

Teacher With College �鶹��ýIOS Giving Lesson In Classroom

Issue Pages

What free speech rights do college students and faculty have in the classroom?

Where are the lines drawn between students’ free speech rights, professors’ academic freedom, and administrators’ interest in meeting institutional goals?

Photo of the barrel of a rifle on top of a keyboard

Issue Pages

Understanding the difference between free speech and material support for terrorism

How to differentiate between the Constitution’s protections for free speech and providing material support for terrorism.