FIRE
@TheFIREorg • 223,784 subscribers
We defend and promote free speech for all Americans in our courtrooms, on our campuses, and in our culture.
Shorts
Videos
What does the Constitution mean in a divided America? That’s the question behind The Blessings of Liberty, a new podcast presented by FIRE and hosted by our newest senior fellow, Jeffrey Rosen. We’re kicking things off with none other than Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch.
FIRE133,896 views • 2 months ago
MUST WATCH: Revoked visas. Deportations. A Red Scare law revived. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says noncitizens don’t have First Amendment rights. Is he right? This is "1AX: Immigration," a FIRE original documentary, featuring Nico Perrino, David French, and Jacob Mchangama.
FIRE541,463 views • 9 months ago
"You raise your voice, I erase your voice.” This viral video of an ICE agent threatening to silence a Minnesota protester is about as un-American as it gets. The events in Minnesota give the country a lesson in the First Amendment that we’d all be better off remembering: The government can punish actual crimes, but it cannot punish protected criticism or protest. When the government blurs those lines, it stops enforcing the law and starts acting like might makes right. That should scare every American.
FIRE329,762 views • 6 months ago
When #JerrySpringer was mayor of Cincinnati, Nazis wanted to march downtown. He knew he had to allow it but worried what his parents—who were Holocaust survivors—would think. They told him, "This is America... Let 'em march." RIP to a principled free speech advocate.
FIRE1,519,794 views • 3 years ago
What happened at UCLA School of Law undermines a university’s basic function. Students have every right to object, question, and peacefully protest invited speakers. But sustained disruption preventing others from hearing a speaker has no place at a university committed to free inquiry. We’ll be watching UCLA’s response.
FIRE101,706 views • 3 months ago
FIRE is deeply troubled by The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s decision to condemn satire and announce an investigation into protected student expression. The The Daily Tar Heel, which is editorially and financially independent from the university, published satirical April Fool’s articles with headlines like “Trump Orders Alcohol Law Enforcement in Chapel Hill Replaced with ICE Agents” and “UNC Brings Back DEI-For Whites.” After calls for takedowns from student groups and the student body president, the paper took the articles down and its editor-in-chief apologized. Hill After Hours, a separate registered student group, also posted and deleted a TikTok sketch satirizing a stereotypical white student walking through an area of campus where predominantly students of color have historically lived. In response, Senior Vice Provost James Orr issued a university statement condemning the satirical content and announced the university was investigating Hill After Hours. That is not the role of a public university. Students and student journalists do not lose their First Amendment rights because their speech is offensive, unpopular, or badly received. Critics are free to answer with more speech. UNC is not free to answer it with condemnation and investigation. UNC-Chapel Hill’s response also raises serious concerns under North Carolina law, which requires UNC System institutions to remain neutral on “the political controversies of the day.” A university cannot claim neutrality while taking an official side against protected student expression. UNC-Chapel Hill must retract its statement and end the investigation. Offense is not license to police protected expression.
FIRE109,725 views • 3 months ago
Florida International University is requiring students to record apology videos after their silent anti-ICE protest at a campus event. The protest drew no complaints, and admin even admitted it wasn’t disruptive, yet students face charges under an unconstitutional speech policy.
FIRE20,949 views • 21 days ago
Whether or not you agree with a player's speech, we should all agree that free speech is essential. And no one knows that better than sports fans. Check out FIRE's new ad airing TONIGHT during the USC Football ✌️ vs. Notre Dame Football game! ⏰ 4:30 PT / 7:30 ET 📺 NBC Sports
FIRE348,103 views • 2 years ago
The UK isn’t just regulating the internet. Now, regulators want oversight of streaming platforms like Netflix and Hulu for “harmful” content. When governments police what counts as “offensive,” companies may think twice about what shows they stream. 🎥: Sarah McLaughlin
FIRE63,127 views • 4 months ago
Whether you support him or not, President Trump’s systematic retaliation against law firms like Susman Godfrey for representing clients or causes he opposes is more than an attack on those firms — it’s an attack on the rule of law itself. Lawyers make easy targets. But as John Adams knew when he defended the British soldiers on trial for the Boston Massacre, securing our rights and freedoms depends on their efforts to uphold the rule of law and defend the unpopular. If you’re being prosecuted, suing the government for violating your rights, or challenging an unconstitutional law, you need a lawyer. And you shouldn’t have to worry about whether the government will retaliate against the attorneys who take your case. Worryingly, there doesn’t seem to be an end in sight to these executive actions that threaten to chill First Amendment-protected advocacy, undermine the right to counsel, and erode due process. President Trump announced that five more executive orders targeting law firms and their clients are forthcoming, even after courts blocked three earlier orders for likely violating the Constitution. The use of executive power to punish opponents is neither new nor confined to a single party, but we should always be alarmed by such unconstitutional overreach. Today’s tactics can just as easily be turned against the views or causes you support tomorrow. For nearly 250 years, America has been a nation of laws, not men. Our heritage of freedom and due process demands that legal processes remain accessible to those with grievances. Access to counsel is a critical part of that liberty.
FIRE156,425 views • 1 year ago