Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century
Explores the line between free speech protected by the First Amendment and unprotected incitement to imminent lawless action.

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century explores the line between free speech and incitement, which is a form of expression not protected by the First Amendment. Incitement occurs when a person intentionally provokes their audience to engage in illegal or violent action that is likely to, or will, occur imminently. This doctrine evolved from World War I through the Cold War and the civil rights movement era, culminating in a test announced by the US Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969). Since the 1970s, this doctrine has remained largely unchanged by the Supreme Court and, as such, has received relatively little academic or media attention. Since the late 2010s, however, violence at political rallies, armed protests around Confederate statues, social unrest associated with demonstrations against police, and an attack on the US Capitol have led to new incitement cases in the lower courts and an opportunity to examine how incitement is defined and applied. Authors from different perspectives in Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century help the reader understand the difference between free speech and incitement.

1146544998
Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century
Explores the line between free speech protected by the First Amendment and unprotected incitement to imminent lawless action.

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century explores the line between free speech and incitement, which is a form of expression not protected by the First Amendment. Incitement occurs when a person intentionally provokes their audience to engage in illegal or violent action that is likely to, or will, occur imminently. This doctrine evolved from World War I through the Cold War and the civil rights movement era, culminating in a test announced by the US Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969). Since the 1970s, this doctrine has remained largely unchanged by the Supreme Court and, as such, has received relatively little academic or media attention. Since the late 2010s, however, violence at political rallies, armed protests around Confederate statues, social unrest associated with demonstrations against police, and an attack on the US Capitol have led to new incitement cases in the lower courts and an opportunity to examine how incitement is defined and applied. Authors from different perspectives in Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century help the reader understand the difference between free speech and incitement.

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Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century

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Overview

Explores the line between free speech protected by the First Amendment and unprotected incitement to imminent lawless action.

Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century explores the line between free speech and incitement, which is a form of expression not protected by the First Amendment. Incitement occurs when a person intentionally provokes their audience to engage in illegal or violent action that is likely to, or will, occur imminently. This doctrine evolved from World War I through the Cold War and the civil rights movement era, culminating in a test announced by the US Supreme Court in Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969). Since the 1970s, this doctrine has remained largely unchanged by the Supreme Court and, as such, has received relatively little academic or media attention. Since the late 2010s, however, violence at political rallies, armed protests around Confederate statues, social unrest associated with demonstrations against police, and an attack on the US Capitol have led to new incitement cases in the lower courts and an opportunity to examine how incitement is defined and applied. Authors from different perspectives in Free Speech and Incitement in the Twenty-First Century help the reader understand the difference between free speech and incitement.


Product Details

ISBN-13: 9798855802030
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Publication date: 11/02/2025
Series: SUNY series in American Constitutionalism
Pages: 288
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.75(d)
Age Range: 18 Years

About the Author

Eric T. Kasper is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Menard Center for Constitutional Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. He is the coauthor of The Supreme Court and the Philosopher: How John Stuart Mill Shaped US Free Speech Protections. JoAnne Sweeny is a Professor of Law at the Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, University of Louisville. Her primary area of scholarship is the freedom of expression and feminist jurisprudence.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Preface
Donald A. Downs

Introduction: Advocacy, Incitement, and Imminent Lawless Action
JoAnne Sweeny and Eric T. Kasper

PART I: The Theoretical Underpinnings of Brandenburg

1. Tolerating the Violent: The Liberal Egalitarian Justifications for the Brandenburg Test
Adam Kunz

2. Anti-Orthodoxy, Inclusion, and the Advocacy of Violence
Timothy C. Shiell

3. Free Speech, Social Justice, and Brandenburg
Stephen M. Feldman

PART II: Incitement Extensions

4. Criminal Solicitation and Incitement as Borderline Criminal Speech: Wily Agitators and Fuzzy Lines
Rachel E. VanLandingham

5. Words Behind Walls: Examining the Line Between Incitement and Administrative Overreach in Prisons
Shavonnie R. Carthens

6. I Fought the Law, and the First Amendment Won: How the Brandenburg Test Safeguards Musical Expression
Eric T. Kasper

7. "Terrorism" and Arguments to Disregard Brandenburg's Incitement Test
Christina E. Wells

PART III: Brandenburg in the Contemporary Era

8. Incitement on the Internet: Rethinking First Amendment Standards in Cyberspace
Howard Schweber and Rebecca J. Anderson

9. Incitement in Context
JoAnne Sweeny

10. We Told You So: Why Courts Won't Hold Trump Accountable for Incitement
Daniel J. Canon

Conclusion: The Future of Brandenburg, Incitement, and the First Amendment
Eric T. Kasper and JoAnne Sweeny

Appendix A – Brandenburg v. Ohio
Appendix B – Relevant US Supreme Court Rulings
Contributors
Index

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