Freedom of Speech

In the twentieth century, especially after World War II, the guarantees of the Bill of Rights once again became a crucial part of American political life, and the Supreme Court became an indispensable defender of citizens' rights.

The First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech and the press is among Americans' most important freedoms. Early in the century, the Court sometimes allowed restrictions on freedom of speech. During World War I, for example, Congress passed the Sedition Act, which effectively prohibited criticism of the government's conduct of the war. Some newspapers and magazines critical of the administration of President Woodrow Wilson(right) were prohibited from publishing and distributing their ideas under the provisions of this act. In the case of Schenck v. U.S. (1919), the Supreme Court upheld restrictions on free speech during wartime. According to the Court, war sometimes entailed curtailing the freedoms that Americans generally enjoyed during peacetime, and harsh attacks on the government posed a "clear and present danger." Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. famously remarked that freedom of speech was not absolute, citing the example that no one had a right to shout "Fire!" in a crowded theater.