First Amendment Video Competition
After an in depth study of our freedom of speech and first amendment, we were tasked with an assignment that allowed us to demonstrate what we learned. In class, we discussed the forms of protected and unprotected speech as well as some implications of how freedom of speech has on case law and the current standards of free speech. After learning about different cases and gaining a deeper understanding of what form a project might take, we were assigned a group. Our group, being all women, decided to use our freedom of speech to show how we can get a message out there and speak up about injustices. We chose to do spoken word as a format for this project and each focused on a different area of interest. I focused on women in corporations and businesses, Sarah focused on women in politics and Bryn spoke about women stereotypes. We wanted to make this project unique and impactful. Rather than using our video to teach people about the First Amendment, we simply used our freedoms to show what can be done and give tangible examples of progress through those rights.
Free Speech Forum Project
Students were tasked with selecting a piece of free speech. This piece could be anything from a song to a political cartoon. With their selection, they created a presentation for the class in which they gave background information about their selection and justified the connection of that piece to freedom of speech. With that same item, students wrote an essay that deepened the connections to the First Amendment. I selected a bumper sticker that read "Focus on Your Own Damn Family," originally. However, I broadened this to include the organization of Focus on the Family. Through this selection, I highlighted the importance of the free speech in our democracy. In a democracy, conversations allow for our nation to thrive and this organization and bumper sticker are both examples of the conversation initiated by a controversial opinion. Everyday, there are different opinions and perspectives expressed through the rights granted to us in the First Amendment. Without the expression of these ideologies, our democracy would cease to succeed.
Street Law Mini-Project
To kick the year off in Humanities, we researched and discovered some of our rights under the constitution. Through discussions and real case studies, we deconstructed our rights and worked to answer the essential question: “How do we balance the need for personal privacy (liberty) with the need to keep a safe, orderly, and just society?” We took three days in class to cover the different rights we had and then designed project related to one of these concepts. The first day discussed the 4th Amendment which discusses the right to search and seize. We also differentiated probable cause and reasonable suspicion by understanding that reasonable suspicion is a level below probable cause. With probable cause, a police can obtain a warrant to search a person and their belongings. However, reasonable suspicion does not allow for a police to get a warrant, but it does allow them to stop and frisk you, which is a pat down search for weapons. Our second day in class we discussed the rights of a student and how our rights are different when we are at school. The last day of content, we covered the rights when you are driving a car, which includes the motor vehicle exemption from a warrant. Through these in class interactions and discussions, we aimed understand our rights so we could produce a project that exhibited our understanding of the content and our rights under the constitution.
In class, we watched a couple videos that exhibited police brutality and different motor vehicle interactions with the police. The rights in a motor vehicle were one of most interesting topics we discussed since most of my peers are student drivers. Knowing that many of my colleagues would be researching their rights as drivers, I was interested in researching the rights of a police when arresting a driver. I was particularly intrigued in the car exemption from a warrant. Though I do not drive, it was strange to think about police searching your car without a warrant. After learning this content in class, I was driving with a friend and we were discussing the rights of a police if they pull you over. I decided to focus on the warrant exemption for a motor vehicle because it was a unique avenue that also allowed me to address the flip side of our rights by shedding light on the rights of the law enforcers.
If we had time to explore this project further, I would likely focus on the student press laws. During this project, I felt like focusing on one of the topics that we covered in class due to the short turnaround of the project. However, if given more time and the opportunity to take this project further, I would have liked to learn about the student press and read more on the Hazelwood court case. This is particularly relevant to me because I am a student journalist and I would like to have a better, deeper understanding of my rights as a member of the press. As I move forward as the Editor and Chief of the newspaper, I think it is especially important for me to understand what we can and can’t publish, so I know how to act appropriately if we do want to publish something that is perceived as controversial.
In class, we watched a couple videos that exhibited police brutality and different motor vehicle interactions with the police. The rights in a motor vehicle were one of most interesting topics we discussed since most of my peers are student drivers. Knowing that many of my colleagues would be researching their rights as drivers, I was interested in researching the rights of a police when arresting a driver. I was particularly intrigued in the car exemption from a warrant. Though I do not drive, it was strange to think about police searching your car without a warrant. After learning this content in class, I was driving with a friend and we were discussing the rights of a police if they pull you over. I decided to focus on the warrant exemption for a motor vehicle because it was a unique avenue that also allowed me to address the flip side of our rights by shedding light on the rights of the law enforcers.
If we had time to explore this project further, I would likely focus on the student press laws. During this project, I felt like focusing on one of the topics that we covered in class due to the short turnaround of the project. However, if given more time and the opportunity to take this project further, I would have liked to learn about the student press and read more on the Hazelwood court case. This is particularly relevant to me because I am a student journalist and I would like to have a better, deeper understanding of my rights as a member of the press. As I move forward as the Editor and Chief of the newspaper, I think it is especially important for me to understand what we can and can’t publish, so I know how to act appropriately if we do want to publish something that is perceived as controversial.
Animas High School 3206 North Main Avenue Durango, CO 81301 (970) 247-2474
My Contact Information: [email protected]
Updated on 10.27.14
My Contact Information: [email protected]
Updated on 10.27.14