By: Trey Bender, Volume 22 Staff Member Whether it is implicit or explicit, oftentimes it seems that politics dominate the public rhetoric in today’s day and age. Many people seem to speak with little regard for the repercussions their speech may incur, with those few who do plainly citing the First Amendment and the Free …
By Benjamin T. Craig, Vol. 22 Staff Member Introduction “It shall be an unlawful employment practice for an employer… to discriminate against any individual…because of his… religion….” This protection, outlined in Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, enshrines our nation’s commitment to protect the religious devotee’s right to free exercise without fear of …
By: Alexandria Belton, Vol. 22 Staff Writer An Indigestible Blow to First Amendment Protection The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) are attempting to unconstitutionally censor “non-misleading factual” labeling of foods low in “fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols” (low-FODMAP). So why is this important, it’s just food labeling, …
By Gregory Purdy, Volume 22 Staff Writer Introduction With an ongoing and intensifying immigration crisis ongoing in our country, all aspects of our government in executives, legislators, and judges find themselves struggling to find the right answers. Finding the balance of limiting illegal immigration while protecting individuals’ rights and liberties has been a major spark for …
By Shripad Bangaru, Vol. 22 Staff Writer Surging in popularity are states engaging in the practice of “book banning” in public schools. “In the 2022–23 school year, PEN America recorded 3,362 instances of books banned, an increase of 33 percent from the 2021–22 school year.” Books such as To Kill a Mockingbird and The Kite …
By. Jack Denton, Vol. 22 Staff Writer In some ways, a religion is like a sports team: individuals join a particular religious tradition, they practice the faith, and they often compete with other religious traditions (but for followers, not a championship). Moreover, like fans of a sports team, believers of a particular religious tradition are …
By Caleb Karnes, Vol. 22 Staff Writer On August 15, 2023, the North Carolina Judicial Standards Commission (JSC) reopened its investigation into North Carolina Supreme Court Justice, Anita Earls, following her interview with Law360. This investigation focused on whether her comments on racial bias in the justice system violated the Code of Judicial Conduct (the …
By Mikaela Kantorowski, Staff Writer Vol. 22 With most sports leagues functioning as private entities, the Constitution, and specifically the First Amendment, usually doesn’t come into play, no pun intended. In fact, the United States Supreme Court rarely decides to kick around issues relating to how the Constitution impacts sports. That said, collegiate athletics is …
By Carolyn Calder, Vol. 22 Staff Writer On July 7, 2023, the Coalition for Independent Technology Research filed a law suit against, among others, Governor Greg Abbott of Texas. The complaint argues that the state of Texas acted unconstitutionally and in violation of the First Amendment when it implemented a ban of the social media …
By Halley Dannemiller, Vol. 22 Staff Writer We rely on apps like Find my Friends daily to keep tabs on family and loved ones, but did you know that this information could be accessed by law enforcement to place you at the scene of a crime? The ready availability of such time-stamped locational data poses …