Freedom of Assembly Role in the United States

Freedom of Assembly in the United States: Role of Assembly

Introduction to Freedom of Assembly Role

The right to assemble has been used by virtually every group seeking any type of political or social change in the United States. The women’s suffrage, labor, and civil rights movements all successfully utilized public assembly to attain their goals. Opponents of the Vietnam War (1959-1975) mobilized vast antiwar protests that helped influence public opinion.

Political parades, protest marches, rallies, picketing, and other forms of gatherings are central to the American experience. However, because the right of assembly forces citizens to tolerate the meetings, parades, and demonstrations of people with contrary ideas, attempts to suppress these gatherings are also familiar in U.S. history. As late as the mid-1930s the U.S. Army and local police forces commonly prevented mass demonstrations, especially protests by the emergent labor movement. During the 1960s local authorities in the South often arrested civil rights marchers who were protesting segregation and other forms of discrimination against African Americans.” (1)

Resources

Notes and References

• Information about Freedom of Assembly Role in the Encarta Online Encyclopedia

Guide to Freedom of Assembly Role