The First Amendment states that Congress will not and cannot make any law prohibiting freedom to speak of a religion or establishment. This amendment allows the following freedoms: speech, peaceful assembly, expression, press, and petitioning the government. Key word: freedom. 

The United States’ current president, Donald Trump, has violated the First Amendment and the freedoms that come with it. Trump has banned the Associated Press from the White House because they did not follow his directives on renaming the Gulf of Mexico. It’s clear Trump feels threatened by such news outlets since they now aren’t allowed to be in any “press pools.” Trump has also cut funding to colleges, such as Columbia University, which has allowed students to protest in the past. Trump has clearly demonstrated that if colleges are going to allow protesting, their funds will be cut. Both of these actions violate the First Amendment by completely disregarding freedom of speech. 

History continuously proves that the First Amendment is exceptionally important. For example, it was a crucial aspect during the civil rights movement. It gave U.S. citizens the opportunity to march the streets, speak their truth and experiences, and fight against racial discrimination. Without this powerful movement in history, our rights would be different from how they are currently. We now have those rights because we were able to speak. Another historic event that was assisted by the First Amendment was the women’s suffrage movement, which was when women went against society’s expectations to create a better future for their daughters, nieces, friends, and sisters. These are a few examples in U.S. history, regarding how freedom of speech has had a positive impact, but right now freedom of speech has been violated not only in the U.S. but all around the world. In Venezuela, President Nicolás Maduro is transforming a democracy into a dictatorship. Maduro is accomplishing this by blocking news outlets from publicizing critical information about him. The First Amendment has left a substantial impact throughout history, so one can only hope United States citizens will continue to hold this right.

With Trump as president, it is incredibly difficult to keep track of accurate political news. Fake news, a term popularized by Trump, is false or misleading information claiming to be true. It aims to damage the reputation of someone, leading readers to form opinions based on false information. By using reliable sources, steering clear of websites with various pop-up ads, and avoiding photoshopped images, we can limit the amount of fake news we intake. Trump is branding journalists “the enemy of the people” and is limiting citizens’ right to have their voices heard. 

As Bob Marley once said,  “Get up stand up, stand up for your rights!”

Cites –

https://time.com

https://libguides.uvic.ca/fakenews/consequences

https://libguides.uvic.ca

https://www.tradoc.army.mil

https://www.thejohnsoninstitute.org

https://www.reaganlibrary.gov

https://www.law.cornell.edu

https://www.nytimes.com