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The Shrinking Frontier: Attacks on the First Amendment

There was nothing normal about Trump’s remarks at the Department of Justice a week ago. Not the venue–most other presidents before Trump have deliberately maintained a firewall between the agency and the presidency. And certainly not the words themselves–an hour-long tirade that meandered through a list of the president’s personal grievances. At the top of that list? Well, it seems like the First Amendment itself. Trump decried lawyers (some of whom were called out by name) as “scum,” “thugs” and “really bad people” for taking on litigation that displeased him, and denounced the so-described “corrupt” and “fake news” media for critiquing him and conservative judges.

But he went one step further: both efforts, he declared while staged in front of the DOJ logo and a rapt audience of high-ranking DOJ, FBI, and DEA officials, are “illegal.” Trump’s DOJ speech sends the kind of term-defining message that his infamous golden escalator ride once did at the start of his last White House stint: the Trump administration has a first-amendment problem that it is willing to solve by weaponizing the legal system, including the federal law enforcement apparatus.

For the last two months, we have watched the shrinking frontier of what can and cannot be expressed in a Trump world. Trump has initiated deportation proceedings–at least four in New York, another in DC–based on political speech. He is at war with Maine because the state’s governor was not sufficiently deferential to him in a public spat about trans rights. He has punished media outlets for not kowtowing to him, sued and opened up FCC investigations against those he doesn’t like, and outright shuttered one while defunding many others for not toeing the party line.

With Trump in charge, books are pulled from library shelves, art is banished from museums, and scholarship is exiled from universities. Lawyers who challenge the government must now be afraid to do their jobs–and so must the clients who have entrusted them for protection. It is nearly impossible to fully account for all the ways this administration has battered the freedoms of speech, press, petition, and protest over these past two months to radically reshape the country to its liking.

But, as we have insisted throughout this newsletter series, to understand what is unfolding as merely a White House phenomenon misses a critical part of the story. From Texas to Ohio, states throughout this country are similarly cracking down on what can be said and shown. And it is that full-scale assault on the First Amendment, from federal and state officials alike, that threatens to hollow out this part of the world into a place where there is less–less color, less noise, less safety, and less freedom.  

A Few Stories on the Federal Level to Keep An Eye On

  • The DEIA Purge. The government has been racing these past few weeks to scrub all mention of anything or anyone that it decides are DEIA-related from hundreds of federal government websites. Videos of Tuskegee airmen? Removed from the Air Force website. Stories about the much-vaunted Major General Charles Rogers? Deleted, as were acknowledgments of Jackie Robinson and all links to the Black, Hispanic, and female service members on the Arlington National Cemetery website. The history of Japanese-American infantry units and Native American Code Talkers? Poof, vanished. Even Golden Girls actress Bea Arthur’s legacy of serving in the Marine Corps was wiped clean from the DOD website. And at the NIH, the National Cryptologic Museum, and other buildings, posters and plaques commemorating women and people of color have been ripped from the walls, painted over, or covered. Much of that content has now been restored after public outcry, but the backlash can’t possibly keep up with the 24,000 articles and 26,000 images slated for removal by the Pentagon alone, not to mention the countless reams of stories, research, and datasets currently being combed over by other agencies, from the Centers for Disease Control to the Department of Veteran Affairs.
    • But some are fighting back. Guerrilla archivists–librarians, historians, IT professionals, and everyday digital rebels–are finding a shared mission in groups like the Internet Archive and the Data Rescue Project: gather, preserve, and democratize the information that is otherwise slipping away.      
  • Chilling and Intimidating Lawyers. Late last Friday, Trump issued a memo that threatens to sanction attorneys and law firms who challenge the federal government in litigation that the administration deems “frivolous, unreasonable and vexatious.” Attorneys can find themselves at risk of disciplinary action or worse if they dare to work on so-called meritless “cases that implicate national security, homeland security, public safety, or election integrity.” The memo explicitly called out immigration attorneys. The memo is Trump’s latest move in a series of attacks on any part of the legal profession that attempted to hold the administration accountable. In the words of Marc Elias, who was attacked in the memo by name, “President Trump’s goal is clear. He wants lawyers and law firms to capitulate and cower until there is no one left to oppose his administration in court.”         
  • All Eyes on Columbia University. Weeks after the Trump administration ordered ICE agents to arrest Columbia University graduate students Mahmoud Khalil and Ranjani Srinvasan for their political views and is now threatening to do the same to Yunseo Chung, the university remains in the administration’s crosshairs. Under threat of losing $400 million in federal funding, Columbia has ceded to the administration’s many demands, including expelling more students, firing its union president, and placing its Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department under receivership. Columbia’s decision to cave has earned the scorn of many students,professors, and lawyers, and many worry that this is only the beginning of more widespread attacks on expression, academic freedom, and places of higher education writ large.
  • Already, Trump has threatened to pull $175 million from the University of Pennsylvania because it allowed a trans woman to participate on its women’s swim team in 2022, and there is a long list of colleges and universities that are similarly on the chopping block.
  • Threats of Prosecution. This weekend, Pam Bondi hit the media circuit to repeatedly warn Jasmine Crockett to “tread very carefully” after the congresswoman expressed support for non-violent  protests against Elon Musk and his Tesla car company (which the administration is classifying as domestic terrorism). “She must apologize immediately not only to all Texans, but to our country, to the American shareholders of Tesla, because she is promoting violence,” Bondi insisted. Crockett joins other Democratic congressmembers who have also been threatened with criminal prosecution for their speech.  

States and Localities Jumping In To Restrict Freedom of Expression

We are witnessing an unprecedented (at least in our current era) wave of governmental actions restricting free expression and academic freedom. From city halls to state legislatures, elected officials are using their power to silence voices, censor content, and control what can be taught or displayed in public spaces. These are not isolated incidents but part of a coordinated effort to restrict the free exchange of ideas.

Silencing Educators and Academic Voices
  • Idaho. School administrators ordered a middle school teacher in West Ada, Idaho to remove her classroom signs reading “Everyone is welcome here” because administrators claim they create division and violate the policy requiring displays to be “content neutral.” The teacher has refused to remove the signs and is gathering student and community support.
  • Louisiana. Law professor Ken Levy was suspended from LSU after he made critical comments about LA Governor Jeff Landry and President Trump during a lecture. Despite twice winning court rulings that he should return to the classroom, appeals courts have overruled these decisions. Governor Landry has continued publicly attacking Levy on social media, even suggesting “maybe it’s time to abolish tenure.”
  • Ohio. The Ohio Senate passed SB 1, a bill designed to radically restrict free expression at public universities, and the Ohio House passed it 58 to 34 last week. The legislation would ban diversity and inclusion efforts, prevent faculty from striking, set restrictive rules around classroom discussions of “controversial” subjects like the climate crisis, foreign policy, and immigration, and mandate specific requirements. Despite overwhelming opposition, one senator dismissed any opposition as “irrelevant,” and the bill will head back to the Ohio Senate to review changes, and then Governor DeWine is expected to sign it into law.
Censoring Cultural Expression and Content
  • Florida. The mayor of Miami Beach attempted to evict an independent cinema from city-owned property and withdraw thousands of dollars of grant funding because the movie theater simply screened the Oscar-winning Palestinian and Israeli documentary “No Other Land.” The mayor claimed the film constitutes propaganda, undoubtedly taking his cues from the Trump administration’s attacks detailed above. At an emotional City Commission meeting last week, the mayor dropped his attempts at censorship after it became obvious he did not have the votes. The film has sparked intense controversy since its release, with its unflinching portrayal of life under occupation drawing both international acclaim and hostile reactions. This controversy escalated in a violent incident where one of the film’s Palestinian co-directors, Hamdan Ballal, was attacked by Israeli settlers and detained by the Israeli military shortly after winning the Oscar.
  • Texas. Both the University of Texas System and Texas A&M System have banned drag performances from campus facilities. When students challenged this censorship in court, Texas A&M argued that drag is not protected speech under the First Amendment and claimed they might lose funding if they allow such performances. This week, a federal judge temporarily blocked Texas A&M’s ban, ruling that the policy violated First Amendment rights. U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal emphasized that even offensive speech is protected, stating, “Anyone who finds the performance or performers offensive has a simple remedy: don’t go.” These bans follow executive orders from Governor Abbott and President Trump targeting “gender ideology,” with system leaders suggesting they must comply to avoid losing state and federal dollars.

Courage in the Spotlight

  • Many courageous stories come from the attacks on freedom of expression discussed above.
    • The owner of O Cinema, targeted by Miami Beach’s mayor, still screened the documentary to sold-out audiences, stating: “We understand the power of cinema to tell stories that matter and we recognize that some stories—especially those rooted in real-world conflicts—can evoke strong feelings and passionate reactions. As they should. Our decision to screen No Other Land is not a declaration of political alignment. It is a bold reaffirmation of our fundamental belief that every voice deserves to be heard.”
    • Sarah Inama, the Idaho teacher, refuses to remove her signs promoting a welcoming classroom, saying: “There are only two opinions on this sign: Everyone is welcome here, or not everyone is welcome here.” In a show of solidarity, hundreds of parents and students participated in a “Chalk the Walk” event, filling sidewalks and parking lots with welcoming messages. Despite the district’s attempts to wash away the chalk messages, claiming concerns about tracking materials inside, students and community members have continued to challenge the school’s decision, arguing that the “Everyone is welcome here” message is fundamental to creating an inclusive learning environment.
    • Thousands of Ohio students walked out of classes and marched from Ohio State University to the Statehouse to protest what they call the “Higher Education Destruction Act.”
  • Last year, talented young musicians from Equity Arc (a nonprofit supporting musicians of color) were selected to perform with “The President’s Own” United States Marine Band. When Trump’s executive order banning DEI programs throughout the federal government and military forced the cancellation of their May concert, retired military musicians from all service branches stepped in to mentor the students instead. The teens ultimately performed their planned repertoire for 60 Minutes, demonstrating their resilience and talent in the face of the Trump administration’s cruelty.
  • Get to know a group of unsung heroes fighting First Amendment battles in “the conservative citadels of Tarrant County, of Clay County, Florida, and the tiny parish of Livingston, Louisiana”: librarians. A new documentary follows their lives as they “risk […] safety and livelihood to speak up for First Amendment rights, intellectual freedom, and, most of all, for the students who tell them ‘books have saved them.’”  
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