Free Speech | American Civil Liberties Union“Freedom of expression is the matrix, the indispensable condition, of nearly every other form of freedom.”—U. S. Supreme Court Justice Benjamin N. Cardozo in Palko v. Connecticut. Freedom of speech, the press, association, assembly, and petition: This set of guarantees, protected by the First Amendment, comprises what we refer to as freedom of expression. Wow Burning Crusade Free Private Server
It is the foundation of a vibrant democracy, and without it, other fundamental rights, like the right to vote, would wither away. The fight for freedom of speech has been a bedrock of the ACLU’s mission since the organization was founded in 1. The organization’s work quickly spread to combating censorship, securing the right to assembly, and promoting free speech in schools. Almost a century later, these battles have taken on new forms, but they persist. The ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project continues to champion freedom of expression in its myriad forms — whether through protest, media, online speech, or the arts — in the face of new threats. For example, new avenues for censorship have arisen alongside the wealth of opportunities for speech afforded by the Internet. The threat of mass government surveillance chills the free expression of ordinary citizens, legislators routinely attempt to place new restrictions on online activity, and journalism is criminalized in the name of national security. The ACLU is always on guard to ensure that the First Amendment’s protections remain robust — in times of war or peace, for bloggers or the institutional press, online or off. Over the years, the ACLU has frequently represented or defended individuals engaged in some truly offensive speech. Shelley Lubben, an ex-porn star, discusses the destructive, drug infested, abusive, and sexually diseased world of porn production. What is Jihad: The Arabic word Jihad is derived from the root word Jahada (struggle). Jihad has come to mean an offensive war to be waged by Muslims against all non. We have defended the speech rights of communists, Nazis, Ku Klux Klan members, accused terrorists, pornographers, anti- LGBT activists, and flag burners. That’s because the defense of freedom of speech is most necessary when the message is one most people find repulsive. Constitutional rights must apply to even the most unpopular groups if they’re going to be preserved for everyone. Some examples of our free speech work from recent years include: The ACLU filed amicus briefs on behalf of The Slants, an Asian- American band that had been denied a trademark because the Patent and Trademark Office had deemed its name “disparaging” to Asian- Americans. In 2. 01. 6, the ACLU filed a lawsuit on behalf of environmental and racial justice activists in Uniontown, Alabama, who were sued for defamation after they organized against the town’s hazardous coal ash landfill. In 2. 01. 4, the ACLU filed an amicus brief in Elonis v. United States, arguing that subjective intent to threaten is required for someone to be prosecuted for making threatening statements. In 2. 01. 4, the ACLU of Michigan filed an amicus brief arguing that the police violated the First Amendment by ejecting an anti- Muslim group called Bible Believers from a street festival based on others’ violent reactions to their speech. In 2. 01. 2, the ACLU of Georgia filed a lawsuit against the state of Georgia for denying the Ku Klux Klan’s application to participate in an “adopt a highway” program. In 2. 01. 0, the ACLU filed an amicus brief at the Supreme Court arguing that the First Amendment protects the Westboro Baptist Church’s anti- LGBT protests at military funerals. Comfort Zone Crusade: The Landmark Forum. Hey curious cats!! If you’ve ever wondered what The Landmark Forum is really like, I’m here to give you the real deal. What is The Landmark Forum? According to their site, it’s a course designed to bring about positive, permanent shifts in the quality of your life—in just three days. You’ll experience a new and unique kind of freedom, effectiveness, and power—the freedom to be at ease in any circumstance, a new effectiveness in areas that really matter to you, and the power to make what you’re committed to into a reality. I completed the Landmark Forum this week. I feel very compelled to write this blog because I’ve been resisting (fiercely resisting) Landmark for about 5 years. Countless people have approached me about it, suggested I do it, even offered to pay for me to do it. I heard so many things about how “it would change my life,” but never really got any real insight into what was going on there. I also heard all kinds of crazy things about what it was like: that it’s a cult, that you have to talk about intimate details about your life on a microphone and then you get yelled at, that they force you to call all of your exes, that you aren’t allowed to leave the room to go to the bathroom, that they force you to take out your credit card and register for more courses. As you can see, I had a million ideas about Landmark. I constantly judged people in my mind for being “soooo Landmarky” and I was completely sure I didn’t want to do it. Even more importantly, nobody could “make me do it.” #rebel. But as part of my 2. Comfort Zone Crusade…. I decided to register for Landmark. Why!? Well, I finally met someone whose experience really inspired me. We were out having dinner and he started sharing some of the ways he looks at life and the ways he works through different struggles. I was completely mesmerized by his outlook on life. He was committed to living a life of sheer excellence. Committed to breaking through his own comfort zone to transform what he thought were his limitations. Committed to being unreasonable in order to make his dreams come true. He spoke so confidently about the possibilities that were available to him, and to me. I told him about an issue I was struggling with. He talked me through it in a way I’d never even considered before. He showed me how to break out of the stories I was living in, how to pull myself out of the sea of emotions I felt like I was drowning in. Something immediately lifted, even if just slightly.“Whoa. Where did you learn all of this!?” I asked, with my eyes wide. Have you heard of Landmark?”Oh boy. It was the first time I’d actually felt lit up on the inside when hearing about Landmark. I left the dinner feeling kind of high. Like anything was possible, and that what he said had already changed my life. Really. Suddenly, a song quote popped into my head…“you have to try it if you’re ever really gonna know.” I decided it was time to blast through my comfort zone and see what all the hype was about. Honestly? I wanted what he had. I went online and registered, and I immediately started judging myself, and thinking about what people in my life would think. OMG, I can’t believe I actually signed up for Landmark, who AM I? Why was I making it SUCH a big freaking deal? I don’t know, it seems insane now). Landmark seems to be the the type of thing that everyone has a million questions about and nobody really knows what goes on until they experience it. Kinda like Burning Man, maybe. So now that I’m on the other side, here are some answers to the questions I had before Landmark. If you have others, please, ask in the comments!! Please note I’m not affiliated with Landmark in any way and I wasn’t asked to write this blog. I’ve attempted to put together a balanced overview of the good and the not- so- good. As T. I. would say… “I got love for the game but hey, I’m not in love with all of it.” : )Is Landmark a cult? The answer to that is no, but I just freaking LOVE when people dismiss things as cults, it’s funny, like what is that about? I really like immersing myself in things like that, I love investigating, especially when people say something’s culty. Landmark is taught by lots of different teachers, it’s a course. They call it a “curriculum for living” with information you can choose to incorporate into your life or not. You pay to learn, and to be “coached” by a Landmark coach for the weekend on how to have positive breakthroughs in different areas of your life — and then you leave. You can take more courses if you want. You can never step foot into Landmark again if you want. It’s really not that different from going on a retreat where a specific teacher is sharing their specific teachings, and then you leave and decide what to do with those teachings. Do some people get SUPER into it and end up following the teachings in a more dedicated way than others? Of course. Yes. As with any teaching or curriculum. Some people devote their lives to it and speak constantly in “Landmark lingo,” and that may seem nutty to you (I know it seemed totally weird to me!!) Most people, however, take what they want, take what seems useful for their lives, and leave the rest behind. If you’re a strong person who can make your own choices, you should really have nothing to worry about. Do they really keep you in a room for 1. Yes. The days are long. You’ll probably get tired. I was exhausted by the end. The deal: you are in a large room with lots of chairs and a stage where the course leader teaches from. There were 1. 65 people in my course. There are Landmark signs hanging around the room that say things like “Transformation: The Genesis of a New Realm of Possibility” and “A new view and experience of life emerges as constraints from the past disappear.” (Reminded me of the signs hanging up in 1. The day begins at 9am and ends roughly around 1. There are breaks every 2. There are a few 3. During the breaks, you are given assignments to do. These assignments are suggested and encouraged, but not forced. You can do whatever you want. A good amount of the time is spent learning about the concepts that Landmark teaches for living life powerfully and living a life you love, which I personally thought were really helpful. The rest of the time is spent with people sharing in front of the crowd and working through whatever they want to create a breakthrough in. Can you eat and drink? In the actual classroom, you can only drink water. There is a break room where you can eat food during breaks. I suggest you bring something to eat during the 3. I brought Larabars (I don’t think I’ve eaten that many Larabars in a 3 day period, ever)! Oh, also bring your phone charger! They have charging stations and you’ll want to be fully juiced. They suggest you don’t drink alcohol or do any drugs for the duration of the course. Is it true that you’re not allowed to leave the room to go to the bathroom? No. I heard that before I went, but it’s not true at all. You can leave to go to the bathroom as many times as you want, without restriction. I will say, however, that they tell you the more time you spend out of the room, the less you will get out of the course. I honestly do agree with that, I wanted to be in the room every possible moment so I wouldn’t miss an insight or someone’s breakthrough. Do they really force you to get up and speak on the microphone about your personal life? Not at all. They encourage people to raise their hands to get up and share what they are struggling with so they can be coached in front of the group, which helps everybody. If you don’t raise your hand, you won’t be called on. Even though public speaking makes me insanely terrified, I did choose to get up on the mic and get coached through something. Believe me, when you’re in the room, you WANT to raise your hand, because it’s fun. I never thought I’d say that. I was so scared before I got up there on the mic. But after a day in the Forum I realized that everyone’s scared and everyone wants to look good in front of everyone else. And truth be told, I really did want to be coached and possibly have a breakthrough with a situation. It wasn’t that big of a deal once I did it. Do they really yell at you and “break you down” on stage in front of everyone? Haha. Well, listen. They don’t YELL at you, but I would definitely call it tough love. In an awesome way. My course leader was hilarious and honest. Here’s what happened when I went up to the mic: I stood up and told a story about a relationship in my life, something I’ve been working through for a long time. This relationship is one of the main reasons I went to Landmark. I spilled all the beans about it to 1. The course leader’s response?“Your life is absurd.”Me, laughing: “I know. It’s so gross.”Course leader: “You’re living in a Disney movie fairytale or a country western love song or something. Your problems are way too small. You’re just not up to anything big enough in the world. You need to solve bigger problems. You’re like a leaf in the wind with this person, you let a fantasy dictate everything you do. It’s holding you back from actually taking responsibility for living the life you really want. What could you create in your life, and in the world, if you stopped living in Disneyland? If you didn’t spend all your time focusing on this, what possibilities would you want to create for yourself?”Me: “Yeah. I know. Well, I want to create the possibility of being free, strong, powerful, authentic, expressive, creative, sexy…. Course leader: “And THAT, my dear, is powerfully attractive.” (Hoots of agreement from men in the audience). Then we went back and forth a little more on it, about the actions to take in order to create those possibilities. So, yeah, it definitely felt like “tough love,” but she wasn’t yelling at me. In fact, it was endearing. We were all laughing. And honestly, I agreed with her. She simplified things down enough for me to be like, dude, snap out of it.
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