In John R. Vile's article, "Black Lives Matter" under the First Amendment Encyclopedia, The six clauses/ freedoms are in fact present. To recap, the Six Clauses/ Freedoms of the First Amendment are:
1) From Religion, 2) Of Religion ;
3) Of Speech 4) Of The Press ;
5) Of Assembly 6) To Petition;
John R. Vile's article discusses various topics including the origin/ introduction of the start of protesting, how protests have turned controversial and into riots, and how police impositions have had an impact on First Amendment rights. Starting up the article, Vile discusses the Michael Brown case. In August of 2014, outside of St. Louis, an 18-year-old black man named Michael Brown was fatally shot by a white officer, named Darren Wilson. A grand jury declined to indict Wilson, and the United States Justice Department opted against civil rights charges. The death of Mr. Brown, who was unarmed, lead to many months of violent protesting and became an impetus for the Black Lives Matter movements, which ultimately brings to attention the police treatment of minorities. A number of judges have even prohibited attorneys from wearing black lives matter pins in courtrooms.
In common opinion amongst individuals, the presence of police officers and other forces dressed in complete combat gear and military weapons definitely added to the already risen tension In Ferguson protesting with Black Lives Matter. Even today in Black Lives Matter protesting regarding the death of George Floyd and other African American individuals who have tragically lost their lives to police brutality, even when assembly and protest is peaceful, forces are always present. This forceful presence ultimately creates a distance from the police and members of the Black Lives Matter organization and supporters. How are we supposed to come together if the already risen tension is just being emphasized? Additionally, in Vile’s article, the argument of Ashley M Eick (Candidate at the William and Mary Law school), which argued that such a militarized police response poses a chilling effect on the right of peaceable assembly, corresponds to clause five of the Six Clauses/ Freedoms of the First Amendment: Freedom of peaceful assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right or ability of people to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue, and defend their collective or shared ideas (Legal Information Institute).
In addition to the challenge of the Fifth Clause of the First Amendment, this article and today's current events regarding Black Lives Matter gatherings also relate to Clause Six of the First Amendment which states that individuals have the right to petition government for redress and right to make a complaint to, or seek the assistance of one's government, without fear of punishment or reprisals. Thus, it is quite contradictory that individuals are facing such forceful retaliation from police and other protection forces especially when certain assemblies are not creating violence or causing any reason for police interaction. Why are individuals facing trouble for what has been written into our history as right and just?
In my opinion, I do in fact believe that certain police and other security forces are acting over the top with Black Lives Matter assemblies, especially when they aren't violent. However, I do not think that all police are out to create trouble for the people of the Black Lives Matter assemblies. I can see how they can be intimidating for sure; do I think it's necessary for all the weapons to be present? No. I think it’s definitely over the top especially for peaceful assemblies. However, many of these assemblies have turned into violent riots as stated in Vile’s article, and I think it is in fact necessary to have police and other security measures present to prevent people from getting hurt. There are ways to assemble and represent what you believe in without getting violent. With the hot topic of police brutality circulating in the United States, especially throughout the years, I can certainly see how people are now increasingly becoming more anxious when police and other forces are on the scenes of causes such as Black Lives Matter assemblies and other events because of what happened To George Floyd and many other African-American individuals which involve cases related to police brutality. These brutality related cases should have never happened, and it is very saddening to think that such disturbing events are going on in our own country.
https://www.mtsu.edu/first-amendment/article/1512/black-lives-matter
https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution-conan/amendment-1#amdt1e_hd17
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