John Marshall Harlan II famous quotes

Last updated: Sep 5, 2024

The constitutional right of free expression... is designed and intended to remove governmental restraints from the arena of public discussion, putting the decision as to what views shall be voiced in the hands of each of us, in the hope that the use of such freedom will ultimately produce a more capable citizenry and more perfect polity and in the belief that no other approach would comport with the premise of individual dignity and choice upon which our political systems rests.
-- John Marshall Harlan II

#Government #Views #Expression
One man's vulgarity is another man's lyric.
-- John Marshall Harlan II

#Men #Government #Vulgarity
Privacy in one's associations... may in many circumstances be indispensable to freedom of association, particularly where a group espouses dissident beliefs.
-- John Marshall Harlan II

#Justice #Groups #May
We cannot sanction the view that the Constitution, while solicitous of the cognitive content of individual speech, has little or no regard for that emotive function which, practically speaking, may often be the more important element of the overall message sought to be communicated.
-- John Marshall Harlan II

#Views #Justice #Important
The dissemination of the individual's opinions on matters of public interest is for us, in the historic words of the Declaration of Independence, an 'unalienable right' that 'governments are instituted among men to secure.' History shows us that the Founders were not always convinced that unlimited discussion of public issues would be 'for the benefit of all of us' but that they firmly adhered to the proposition that the 'true liberty of the press' permitted 'every man to publish his opinion'.
-- John Marshall Harlan II

#Men #Issues #Freedom Of Speech

Well, fancy giving money to the Government! Might as well have put it down the drain.
[The U.S. government] was tired of treaties. They were tired of sacred hills. They were tired of ghost dances. And they were tired of all the inconveniences of the Sioux. So they brought out their cannons. 'You want to be an Indian now?' they said, finger on the trigger.
It's embarrassing ... you try to overthrow the government and you wind up on the Best Seller's List.
I take a grave view of the press. It is the weak slat under the bed of democracy
Many will view the compromises that will be made during your negotiations as painful concessions. But why not view them as peace offerings, ones that will provide in return the priceless gifts of hope, security and freedom for our children and our children's?
In our view, successful reform is not an event. It is a sustainable process that will build on its own successes - a virtuous cycle of change.
Traveling is one expression of the desire to cross boundaries.
It can hardly be argued that either students or teachers shed their constitutional rights to freedom of speech or expression at the schoolhouse gate.
In order for the State in the person of school officials to justify prohibition of a particular expression of opinion, it must be able to show that its action was caused by something more than a mere desire to avoid the discomfort and unpleasantness that always accompany an unpopular viewpoint.
People who think of children's nudity as a tool don't need freedom of expression.

John Marshall Harlan II famous quotes

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