[23083] in APO-L
Re: [APO-L] APO and constitutional rights
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Rich Quodomine)
Thu Oct 31 22:41:30 2002
Date: Thu, 31 Oct 2002 22:41:27 -0500
Reply-To: Rich Quodomine <aposatan@HOTMAIL.COM>
From: Rich Quodomine <aposatan@HOTMAIL.COM>
To: APO-L@LISTSERV.IUPUI.EDU
>Question: If it is a constitutional right to be able to peacefully
>assemble,
>then isn't it technically a violation of the Constitution for a school,
>especially a public college, to bar the organization of fraternities
>without
>due cause, such as a prior or existing incident of hazing in the
>fraternities in question?
>
No, the right to assemble, as stated in the Bill of Rights, has consistently
been clarified - you can't eliminate public assembly, but you can channel
and give it venues.
Further, the formation of legal organizations and their extensions, oftn
called chapters, are subject to a variety of state and local limitations.
The intent was the right to include peaceful protest within the public eye
and allowing a rightful venue for government protest. The formation of
individual groups, for advocacy or commerce, has always been subject to
various local laws.
The right to assemble is not necessarily the right to organize a legal
entity sch as a charter is - it is subject to an authority (local
government) and an institution with its own bylaws (a university). Thus, the
constitutinon, while an overarching document, does not supersede home rule
in the specific application of the general right.
All the best,
Rich
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