Laws target violent protesters, raise First Amendment concerns – By Patrik Jonsson (CS Monitor) / Oct 13 2020
Lawmakers worried about civil unrest are proposing an array of laws, such as protecting drivers who injure protesters in self-defense. Critics say the laws would undermine “the right to assemble in America.”
Peter Capretto is a student of empathy, literally, as a professor at Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, Oklahoma. But in early 2017, when Mr. Capretto became among the first people in the Trump era to be struck by a vehicle at a racial justice protest, the young theologian saw his trust in the good faith of others shaken.
After trying to stop a driver from careering into a crosswalk full of protesters, Mr. Capretto and several others were carried 200 feet on the hood of the truck. Expecting an arrest, Mr. Capretto was stunned when the driver was cleared of wrongdoing, saying he feared for his life.
“I wish that I could placate my own anxiety by telling myself that if we are generous 100% of the time, we will cure all social ills,” he says.
Continue to article> https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2020/1013/Laws-target-violent-protesters-raise-First-Amendment-concerns
