1st Edition
The Democratic Rule of Law on Trial First Amendment Cases of the Trump Era
This book examines selected high-profile U.S. First Amendment cases occurring during the Trump era as a vehicle for exploring a possible fundamental commonality in understanding the democratic rule of law globally. In each of these cases, the adjudicating body’s analytical legal strategy is discussed in terms of how it reinforces or detracts from the democratic rule of law. It was and continues to be highly internationally anticipated as to what legal examples are being set by this established democracy when confronted by legal contests between the former Trump administration and those alleging their rights were somehow violated by the executive of that time. Thus, the book is instructive for an international audience on the essential role of the courts in protecting democracy through providing, where supported by the law and the facts, a remedy for the aggrieved comparatively powerless. The book will be essential reading for academics and researchers working in the areas of constitutional law, politics and human rights.
Acknowledgements
Preface
1 The Democratic Rule of Law and Free Speech Examined in the Context of the Second Impeachment Trial of Donald J. Trump
2 The Trump First Amendment Twitter Case: Blocking the Public’s Political Speech on Government Social Media Accounts
3 The First Amendment Defence, Alleged “Political Speech” and Disinformation Campaigns
4 The First Amendment Right to Petition the Government for Redress Versus the Intimidation of Elected Officials and Speech Promulgating Disinformation
5 The First Amendment Rights of Public School Students: The Snapchat Case
6 The Democratic Rule of Law, Religious Freedom and the Public Interest: Different Cases, Different Equities to Consider
7 Concluding Remarks: On the Role of the Courts in Upholding the Democratic Rule of Law
Index
Biography
Sonja Grover is a full professor in the Faculty of Education, Lakehead University, Ontario, Canada. She graduated with a PhD from University of Toronto and has devoted the last 20 years of her career to law research. She has published extensively in peer-reviewed international and comparative law journals and has also single-authored numerous law books. Sonja is an associate editor with The International Journal of Human Rights .
Sonja is committed to improving the human rights situation of vulnerable groups, especially children, by exposing through her research publications where and how domestic and international legal systems have failed these groups and offering suggestions for remediation. She also has a keen interest in the fundamentals of the democratic rule of law, an area of study to which this book is a significant contribution.
