Freedom of Speech Is One of the Most Valued Right - Essay Example

People do have their own opinions on issues or ideas to share and at times do not care about the effects of their expressions. In the US, the First Amendment is a very popular right, employed by every kind of individual. Disappointingly, it is often obviously utilized as a means to justify a wrongdoing such as in Skywalker vs. Navarro and Luke Records vs. Navarro. This writer does not agree with the reversal by the circuit court because it is the writer’s opinion that As Nasty As They Wanna Be does meet the third part of the Miller Test.

       The following types of speech are not protected under the First Amendment: those that damage the reputation of another, those that stimulate illegal action, those directed to another person and would inflict injury or a fight, and those that are found obscene according to the Miller test. In Miller vs. California, the court gave three points to use in deciding whether something could be described as obscene. These points were applied in the two cases which are the subjects of this paper.

       Both courts found that the first and second parts of the Miller test were fulfilled. As what had been stated in Skywalker vs. Navarro, Florida laws are very specific on what it considers obscene. Although this writer agrees with Luke Records that since the judge referred to Florida’s criminal law description as to what is obscene proof beyond a reasonable doubt, a requisite in a criminal case, should be presented, the writer also understands the first court’s opinion that the proceeding is not a criminal one and as such aspects of a criminal case are not necessary. The court only needs to review if the material meets Florida laws, as identified in the Miller test.

       This writer also agrees with the appellate court that the judge’s background about the community referred to in the case is enough to satisfy the first part of the Miller test. As the first court found, it was the public who put the individuals in the legislature and judiciary thus entrusting these authorities to represent the public’s opinion when required.

       Lastly, as stated earlier, this writer is of the mind that the first court was correct in finding the material, as a whole, lacking artistic value. True, the music is hip-hop and rap, two of the most influential and popular kinds of music of the current generation. However, the object of the case in Skywalker vs. Navarro was not the music as a whole but the lyrics or the words in the songs as a whole. As such, “work, taken as a whole,” as stated in part three of the Miller test should be associated with only the entire lyrics found in As Nasty As They Can Be and not the songs which denote music combined with lyrics.

This writer believes that the appellants knew their album would be tagged as obscene because of the words that can be found there which is why they spent time and money recording and coming out with a “clean” version and even put a clear warning on the album. The only notable difference between the “clean” version and the version in question was the lyrics, which were the main focus of the first case. The appellants’ witness who testified about the lyrics claimed that these are examples of musical and literary conventions even.