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Japan Today
4 days ago
- Politics
- Japan Today
How covering your face became a constitutional matter: Mask debate tests free speech rights
By CHRISTINE FERNANDO Protesters confront police on the 101 Freeway near the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles on June 8. Many of the protesters who flooded the streets of Los Angeles to oppose President Donald Trump's immigration crackdown wore masks or other face coverings, drawing scorn from him. 'MASKS WILL NOT BE ALLOWED to be worn at protests," Trump posted on his social media platform, adding that mask-wearing protesters should be arrested. Protesters and their supporters argue Trump's comments and repeated calls by the Republican president's allies to ban masks at protests are an attempt to stifle popular dissent. They also note a double standard at play: In Los Angeles and elsewhere, protesters were at times confronted by officers who had their faces covered. And some U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have worn masks while carrying out high-profile raids in Los Angeles and other cities. All of which begs the question: Can something that covers your mouth protect free speech? Protesters say the answer is an emphatic yes. Several legal experts say it's only a matter of time before the issue returns to the courts. Trump's post calling for a ban on masks came after immigration raids sparked protests, which included some reports of vandalism and violence toward police. 'What do these people have to hide, and why?' he asked on Truth Social on June 8. The next day, Trump raged against the anti-ICE protests, calling for the arrest of people in face masks. It's not a new idea. Legal experts and First Amendment advocates warn of a rising number of laws banning masks being wielded against protesters and their impacts on people's right to protest and privacy amid mounting surveillance. The legal question became even more complicated when Democratic lawmakers in California introduced legislation aiming to stop federal agents and local police officers from wearing face masks. That came amid concerns ICE agents were attempting to hide their identities and avoid accountability for potential misconduct. 'The recent federal operations in California have created an environment of profound terror," state Sen. Scott Wiener said in a press release. Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the California bill 'despicable." 'While ICE officers are being assaulted by rioters and having rocks and Molotov cocktails thrown at them, a sanctuary politician is trying to outlaw officers wearing masks to protect themselves from being doxed and targeted by known and suspected terrorist sympathizers,' McLaughlin said in a statement. At least 18 states and Washington, D.C., have laws that restrict masks and other face coverings, said Elly Page, senior legal adviser with the International Center for Not-For-Profit Law. Since October 2023, at least 16 bills have been introduced in eight states and Congress to restrict masks at protests, the center says. The laws aren't just remnants of the coronavirus pandemic. Many date back to the 1940s and '50s, when many states passed anti-mask laws as a response to the Ku Klux Klan, whose members hid their identities while terrorizing victims. Amid protests against the war in Gaza and Trump's immigration policies, Page said there have been attempts to revive these rarely used laws to target protesters. Page also raised concerns about the laws being enforced inconsistently and only against movements the federal government doesn't like. In May, North Carolina Senate Republicans passed a plan to repeal a pandemic-era law that allowed the wearing of masks in public for health reasons, a move spurred in part by demonstrations against the war in Gaza where some protesters wore masks. The suburban New York county of Nassau passed legislation in August to ban wearing masks in public. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican, last month sent a letter to the state's public universities stating protesters could be charged with a felony under the state's anti-mask law. Administrators at the University of North Carolina have warned protesters that wearing masks violates the state's anti-mask law, and University of Florida students arrested during a protest were charged with wearing masks in public. People may want to cover their faces while protesting for a variety of reasons, including to protect their health, for religious reasons, to avoid government retaliation, to prevent surveillance and doxing, or to protect themselves from tear gas, said Tim Zick, law professor at William and Mary Law School. 'Protecting protesters' ability to wear masks is part of protecting our First Amendment right to peacefully protest,' Zick said. Geoffrey Stone, a University of Chicago law professor, said the federal government and Republican state lawmakers assert that the laws are intended not to restrict speech but to 'restrict unlawful conduct that people would be more likely to engage in if they can wear masks and that would make it more difficult for law enforcement to investigate if people are wearing masks.' Conversely, he said, First Amendment advocates oppose such laws because they deter people from protesting if they fear retaliation. Stone said the issue is an 'unresolved First Amendment question' that has yet to be addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court, but the court 'has made clear that there is a right to anonymity protected by the First Amendment.' Few of these laws have been challenged in court, Stone said. And lower-court decisions on mask bans are mixed, though several courts have struck down broader anti-mask laws for criminalizing peaceful expression. Aaron Terr, director of public advocacy at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, said the right to speak anonymously has 'deep roots in the nation's founding, including when anonymous pamphlets criticizing British rule circulated in the colonies.' 'The right to speak anonymously allows Americans to express dissenting or unpopular opinions without exposing themselves to retaliation or harassment from the government,' Terr said. First Amendment advocacy groups and Democratic lawmakers have called the masks an attempt by ICE agents to escape accountability and intimidate immigrants. During a June 12 congressional hearing, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, criticized ICE agents wearing masks during raids, saying: 'Don't wear masks. Identify who you are.' Viral videos appeared to show residents of Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts confronting federal agents, asking them to identify themselves and explain why they were wearing masks. U.S. Rep. Bill Keating, a Democrat who represents Cape Cod, decried 'the decision to use unmarked vehicles, plain clothed officers and masks' in a June 2 letter to federal officials. Republican federal officials, meanwhile, have maintained that masks protect agents from doxing. 'I'm sorry if people are offended by them wearing masks, but I'm not going to let my officers and agents go out there and put their lives on the line and their family on the line because people don't like what immigration enforcement is," ICE acting Director Todd Lyons said. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Japan Today
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Japan Today
Cloudy skies can't dim joy as thousands fill Washington for World Pride parade
By CHRISTINE FERNANDO, JACQUELYN MARTIN and GARY FIELDS Gray skies and drizzle gave way to sunshine, multicolored flags and celebrations as the nation's capital held the World Pride parade Saturday. Tens of thousands of people participated in parades and other festivities, in defiance of what activists say is an unprecedented assault on the LGBTQ+ community that challenges the rights many have fought for over the years. A rainbow flag the length of three football fields flowed through the streets, carried by 500 members of the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C., to kick off the parade. Behind them, people waved Pride flags and flags representing the transgender, asexual and bisexual communities from atop a bus. Singer-songwriter and actor Reneé Rapp laughed and blew kisses from the back of a pickup truck draped with a transgender flag while Laverne Cox, a transgender actress and activist known for her role in Netflix's 'Orange is the New Black,' waved from an open convertible. 'Pride means us looking out for each other no matter what,' she declared to the crowd as the convertible rolled to a stop. 'We know how to be there for each other.' Many LGBTQ+ travelers have expressed concerns or decided to skip World Pride due to anxieties about safety, border policies and a hostile political climate that they say hearkens back to another time. But that did not keep international travelers and other participants away, with groups visible from Iran, Namibia, Kenya and Russia. Along the parade route, hundreds gathered outside the National City Christian Church as rainbow flags and balloons lined its steps and columns. A child with rainbow face paint blew bubbles at the base of the steps while Whitney Houston's 'I Wanna Dance with Somebody' blared from loudspeakers. 'D.C. is already one of the biggest cities in the country for celebrating Pride,' said Cheo White, 33, from Annapolis, Maryland. 'But we are all collectively more united and turning out more because of what's happening in the White House.' Many have said the gathering has taken on a new meaning amid the Trump administration's aggressive policies against protections for transgender Americans and diversity, equity and inclusion programs. White's partner, Nick Kerver, 26, who was visiting from Toledo, Ohio, said Pride has 'always been a political tool' but has taken on more importance this year amid mounting threats to the LGBTQ+ community, especially transgender and nonbinary Americans.' 'It feels more important than ever,' Kerver said while wearing a rainbow hat, sunglasses and a T-shirt. 'But we also have to get involved in our local communities, too.' David Begler, a 58-year-old gay man from Philadelphia, expressed disappointment that many international travelers felt unsafe visiting the District of Columbia for World Pride but said he appreciates its presence in the city during this political climate. 'It's the perfect time to have World Pride in D.C.,' Begler said. 'We need it right now. I want us to send a message to the White House to focus on uplifting each other instead of dividing.' Stay DeRoux, 36, usually plans a day trip to D.C. Pride from her home in Fredericksburg, Virginia. But this year, she and her wife, Deenie DeRoux, planned a full weekend. 'This is a really big year,' Stay DeRoux said. 'There's been a lot of turmoil. So it's an amazing thing to be among allies, among people who love because we've experienced so much hate on a daily basis.' For the day, the idea of threats and opposition took a backseat to the celebration. Streets were closed, but filled with floats, and impromptu parties broke out with music and food in streets adjoining the parade route. Johnny Cervantes Jr., dressed in a black suit and top hat, headed to a grandstand at a church themed float to marry his partner of 28 years, Freddie Lutz, owner of Freddie's Beach Bar and Restaurant in Arlington, Virginia. Events culminate Sunday with a rally and protest march and a giant street party and concert covering a multi-block stretch of Pennsylvania Avenue. 'This is World Pride in the best city in the world,' D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser declared as she walked the parade hand-in-hand with her daughter, Miranda. Late Saturday, the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Police Department reported on its X site, formerly Twitter, that two men were stabbed and another was shot near Dupont Circle, one of the areas of celebration during Pride. A police spokeswoman said it was two incidents. The conditions of the victims were unknown, and there were no other details available. It was not known if the incidents were related to the celebration or to one another. Michael Williams, security at the Madhatter Restaurant, said he heard a loud pop that sounded like a gun shot then saw dozens of people running away from Dupont Circle along Connecticut Avenue, one of the city's main north-to-south thoroughfares. He said police were following behind. 'I just stepped out of people's way. And it looked like police had it under control.' Despite the police presence in the area afterwards, revelers continued flooding nightspots. © Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
