United States v. Grace

461 U.S. 171 (1983)

United States v. Grace dealt with the constitutionality of a law that banned the use of signs, flags, etc. on sidewalks surrounding the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court discussed when and under what circumstances the government could regulate speech in such traditional public arenas. The relevance of this case to free speech on the internet only becomes apparent when considered in conjunction with Reno v. ACLU In Reno, the Court held that:

Through the use of chat rooms, any person with a phone line can become a town crier with a voice that resonates farther than it could from any soapbox. Through the use of Web pages, mail exploders, and newsgroups, the same individual can become a pamphleteer.

 

Thus, the internet plays the same role as a forum for free speech that town squares and sidewalks have traditionally held. So though United States v. Grace dealt only with government regulation of speech on sidewalks, it is just as applicable to laws that would regulate speech on the internet as well.

In Grace, the Court held:

[In public places such as sidewalks that are historically associated with free speech] the government's ability to permissibly restrict expressive conduct is very limited: the government may enforce reasonable time, place, and manner regulations as long as the restrictions "are content-neutral, are narrowly tailored to serve a significant government interest, and leave open ample alternative channels of communication." . . . Additional restrictions such as an absolute prohibition on a particular type of expression will be upheld only if narrowly drawn to accomplish a compelling governmental interest.

 

In United States Postal Service v. Greenburgh Civic Assns., 453 U. S. 114, 133 (1981), we stated that "Congress . . . may not, by its own ipse dixit, destroy the public forum' status of streets and parks which have historically been public forums. . . .”

 

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