President Donald Trump and his allies have repeatedly attacked many fundamental institutions of the United States. The freedom of the press frequently comes under fire, as well as peaceful protests and the groups that organize them.
Since Trump was elected, nineteen states have introduced laws that would limit protesters‘ rights and the freedom of expression. Human rights investigators from the United Nations have, according to Reuters, deemed these laws an “alarming and undemocratic” trend.
States such as Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Missouri have all introduced bills that would hamper citizens’ ability to gather in peaceful protest.
For example, the Minnesota bill would make it legal to punish anyone gathered at a protest if anyone else at the protest turns violent. The Missouri bill would make unlawful obstruction of traffic, a frequent complaint about protest marches, punishable by up to seven years in prison.
Maina Kiai and David Kaye, the two U.N. investigators, published a statement to lawmakers who support these bills:
“The bills, if enacted into law, would severely infringe upon the exercise of the rights to freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly in ways that are incompatible with US obligations under international human rights law and with First Amendment protections. The trend also threatens to jeopardize one of the United States’ constitutional pillars: free speech.”
Other state bills would exempt drivers from criminal liability if they hit a protester, or give police officers authority to use, chillingly, “any means necessary” to clear protesters from roads.
Some people might argue that protesters deserve to be treated in such a way, especially because of the incidences of violence that sometimes occur. Kiai and Kaye have a response to that as well:
“There can be no such thing in law as a violent protest. There are violent protesters, who should be dealt with individually and appropriately by law enforcement. One person’s decision to resort to violence does not strip other protesters of their right to freedom of peaceful assembly. This right is not a collective right; it is held by each of us individually.”
The statement specifically points out groups of protesters that are being targeted by these bills: Black Lives Matter, women’s marches, and the Dakota Access Pipeline protesters are all named.
Watch this video to see how some of those pipeline protesters were treated under current law (please note this video is graphic and may not be suitable for all audiences):
Featured Image via YouTube screenshot.
