The First Amendment embodies the most basic liberties guaranteed to Americans. It affirms freedom of the individual by prohibiting the government from denying citizens their rights. The First Amendment protects religious liberty, freedom of expression, and guarantees that we may associate with people and join groups of our choosing, and in doing so lobby the government to support our beliefs. There are many organizations which are dedicated to upholding the First Amendment, and educating the public about their First Amendment rights. The Freedom Forum is one of these organizations.

In their “watchdog” role, the Freedom Forum publishes the “Outrage of the Week” column, which identifies incidents in which First Am

The First Amendment right which is threatened by Governor Perry’s campaign “promise” is that which prohibits government interference in the individual’s “free exercise” of religion. A law which would establish school-sponsored (which is effectively state-sponsored), officially directed prayer, such as in assemblies or classes where attendance is required, would be therefore be unconstitutional. The Supreme Court’s decision in the 1962 Engel v. Vitale (Freedom Forum 2001) case made clear that state-sponsored prayer is precisely what the establishment clause of the First Amendment was written to prevent. The distinction that should be made, however, is that while the First Amendment prohibits officially directed prayer, it does not dictate that public schools must be religious-free zones, nor does it forbid religious expression during the school day. The First Amendment in no way prevents school students from praying, either in groups, or alone. It does not preclude students from formi

Some topics in this essay:
Governor Perry’s, Freedom Forum, , North America, Rick Perry’s, Amendment Outrage”, governor perry’s, freedom forum, Supreme Court’s, officially directed prayer, directed prayer, officially directed, free exercise, amendment rights, exercise religion, religious liberty, public schools, free exercise religion, establishment religion,