Are vulgar words covered under Free Speech?

Question

A pretty sure that they are but I just want to double check because I do any thing stupid.

I am talking about wearing a shirt that I got as a present that says:

How dare I wear this goddamn shirt in front of your ******* kids?!

I find it funny but wanted to see if it could get me in trouble.

I am talking about wearing a shirt that I got as a present that says:

How dare I wear this goddamn shirt in front of your f*****g kids?!

I find it funny but wanted to see if it could get me in trouble.

Answer 1

Not necessarily. While a person has the right to say anything, the context of such speech also comes into play. The famous example is that you cannot yell "Fire!" in a crowded theater. That speech in that context could start panic and result in someone being injured.

So the manner and content of speech can be regulated pursuant to the state's police powers. Most governments have "disorderly conduct" laws that prohibit the use of profane and abusive language in public settings. So if you use vulgar words in private, you are free to do so. But if you use vulgar words in public and disturb someone else's peace by doing so, then you are not protected by the First Amendment.

Answer 2

"Vulgar" is very vague and ambiguous. Not all speech is protected by the first amendment. Some may consider slander vulgar, but you can still be held to account for slander. If you are talking about some curse words, that may be different issue. The Courts (US Supreme Court and others) have all held that there can be reasonable time, place and manner restrictions on free speech.

Answer 3

Most states and cities have community standards which dictate how vulgarity and obscenity can be used or displayed.
The Constitutional guarantee of free speech was intended to allow citizens to speak out against a tyrannical and oppressive government. Apparently our founding fathers never thought Americans would come to a point where vulgarity and obscenity were commonplace and used strictly for sensationalism or shock value.
Judging from your sentence structure, I doubt you have anything to worry about when it comes to doing anything stupid. -RKO- 09/08/07

Answer 4

the only words that are not protected under free speech is words that will case physical harm to some one. (yelling fire in a crowded theater when there is no fire.) Anything else is legal I don't agree with the people trying to get hate speak classified as illegal. Who determines what hate speech is and look at the NAACP and what they tried to do with the N bomb that did not work either.