Protester Denied Free Speech at Town Hall:
Protester: “Did you take an oath to follow the Constitution?”
Police Officer: “Yes I did”
Protester: “This used to be America”
Police Officer: “It ain’t no more”
The below video was taken on Tuesday, August 25th, 2009 at Rep. Jim Moran’s (D-VA) Town Hall meeting on Obama Deathcare (Howie Dean was there too) held at South Lakes High School in Reston, Virginia, in Fairfax County.
Many people were left outside when the school filled to capacity. Fairfax County School Police Officer Wesley Cheeks, Jr. did not approve of a protester’s anti-Obamacare poster (shown above) which used one of the “Joker” graphics.
Watch the video below and see what happens when Officer Cheeks sees the anti-Obamacare poster.
Good example of content based discrimination. Yes, the public school used for a public town hall may be a limited public forum, under First Amendment case law, and there may be regulation of the general use of signs (maybe) during the event, but any such regulation of how someone expresses their speech must be applied equally to all, and when you target a particular sign for its content, while letting others alone who also have signs, that is discrimination against that speech (the sign) based on its content, rather than simply prohibiting all signs. That is known as “content based discrimination” in legaleese, and it is unconstitutional.
It looks pretty obvious that this officer just didn’t like the message of the sign and was targeting the content of this protesters speech.
Update:
If you would like to file a complaint, go here:
He is a security officer employed by the Fairfax County Public Schools.
You may go to
http://www.fcps.edu to contact the School’s Department of Communication and Community Outreach concerning this matter. They may also be reached by phone at 571-423-1200.
The head of the security department at Fairfax County Public Schools is Fred Ellis. His email is fred.ellis@fcps.edu and his phone number is 703-658-3763”
Let them know that, contrary to what their officer thinks, this is STILL America, the Constitution has not yet been scrapped, the First Amendment still applies, and their oath requires that they respect the right to free speech of all Americans, even when the officer does not like the speech. The First Amendment does not just protect speech the officer on the scene agrees with, and he is not free to implement his own mini-constitutional suspension zone.
Be polite, but firm. Don’t use profanity, but let them know that as an Oath Keeper, you don’t appreciate the oath breaker they have on staff.
Stewart
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August 28th, 2009 at 11:59 pm
I have seen many of these type of confrontations at town hall meetings. There seems to be one common denominator. The police officers present appear to be either intimidated by the crowd or are being given orders to remove anyone that is not there to agree and play nice with their elected representatives.
I’ve also seen the police allow the SEIU and ACORN thugs’ man handle the protesters. Some of which were senior citizens or disabled veterans.
This is not about health care reform. This is about the progressive liberal wing of the Democratic Party using strong arm tactics against their constituents and the moderates within their own party. To Further their agenda and strip this republic of the very fabric of which it was formed.
We must go beyond TEA parties and lawfully assemble to let the politicians know loud and clear and without a doubt that this is a true grass roots movement. We didn’t invent Astroturf.
If I’m not mistaken Mr. Obama’s senior advisor David Axelrod is a real pro at forming these fictions groups that are designed for intimidating we the concerned citizen.
Now is the time to act.
Vigilance is the key to our success,
Robert A. Gomez MSgt, USAF (Ret)
August 29th, 2009 at 3:16 am
The sad truth is that the officer is correct. This is not America anymore. It certainly is not the America that I enlisted and went to Vietnam for.
Tom MacLeran
August 29th, 2009 at 4:05 am
I am also a cop and have been one for 33 plus years. I’m glad to see other law enforcement officials that are outraged by this. Let me state that in NO WAY does this represent the 99% of us out there that would never have handled this situation in this manner. I would also state that citizens that are concerned, and rightly so after seeing this abomination, that law enforcement would somehow succumb or capitulate to being reduced to government “thugs” that take away citizen rights… it ain’t gonna happen. There’s too many of us out there, black, white, brown, red, yellow, male and female that are too professional, too intelligent, too honest, too dedicated to doing the right thing to ever let that happen. They trained us to confront danger, not run away from it, trained us to protect citizen rights, not take them away, and we’re not going to let it happen. TRUST ME!
August 29th, 2009 at 4:14 am
Mr. Gomez: thank you for your service. I can see how you have come to that conclusion based upon at least two videos of black officers acting as enforcers for black or union groups but sir, let me state that we in law enforcement are even more appalled than you are and will never be reduced to that. This may very well be a “weeding out” period for our profession, and we are with you all the way. Most of us understand what is going on, most of us don’t want to see law abiding citizens lose their rights to carry firearms, we are comforted by them having our backs if necessary. Please don’t judge all of us by a few bad apples.
August 29th, 2009 at 4:38 am
Thank you Dave B. I’m very happy to know we have so many law enforcement people who are part of us. Many Americans are worried about where Law Enforcemtn stands. I believe that there is a long standing kinship between the military and our police. We both understand the meaning of HONOR and SERVICE to our fellow Americans. Obama is circumventing the law to destroy us with his appointments of admitted communist and socialist “Czars”. Remember the saying “better dead than red”? I’m not a nut case and don’t profess violence; I hope we can get our contry back on track with ballots, not bullets, but what are the Generals thinking???????
August 29th, 2009 at 9:16 am
I just sent this note to Fairfax County thru the link you provided. I guess if I end up in jail or some damn FEMA camp, it will be for the right reasons.
“It seems to me that either this is the united States of America, or it isn’t. That is a decision to be made by we the people of this nation. Not a cop on the beat that doesn’t recognize free speech. He, like most politicians have no clue what the Constitution says even when they say they do. Just like re-writing history doesn’t change historical facts, re-writing the Constitution does not change the Constition one iota.”
August 29th, 2009 at 10:14 am
Dave B.
Please let me first say that I meant no disrespect to the law enforcement community as a whole. I do not believe that all police officers would react in the same manner as officer Cheeks did. I stand beside you.
Very Respectfully,
Robert A. Gomez MSgt, USAF (Ret)
August 29th, 2009 at 11:16 am
It all starts at the top and trickles down. Seems it started with Holder who allows/allowed w/out question or prosecution of the Black Panthers to intimidate voters…www.youtube.com/watch?v=neGbKHyGuHU
I hope when it gets to this, law enforcement will stand for WE THE PEOPLE….
August 29th, 2009 at 11:21 am
Message of complaint sent, Sir!
August 29th, 2009 at 12:18 pm
This “Officer” is about 60 years behind on his Peace Officer Education.
All I can say is–If he did this in California, where I spent 30+ years as a LEO, he would be getting a notice within 4 days that he was being sued for Civil Rights violations.
As the person in the video said, “All those people over there have signs”- Talk about “Selective Enforcement”!
Dave Hollenbeck
Calif Highway Patrol-retired