First Amendments Rights in the VI being IGNORED!!
Below is a sample letter to send to all the Senators, if you are so inclined:
Hello, Senator ,
I have come across some very disturbing news and I thought that you, being such a respected Senator from our US Virgin Islands, would be highly interested in hearing how one of our local businesses is suppressing the First Amendments Rights of our citizens...not to mention discrimination. It seems that there is a start-up, not-for-profit organization, USVI NORML, that has placed ads in our local Trader Publications, owned by the VI Daily News. They have been very receptive and business-like in their dealing with this Local Chapter start-up.
However, when the exact same ad copy was submitted to The Avis, we found that they refused to run our ad and returned our fee, with the message that we should refrain from submitting any further ads to their paper.
Now, as I understand it, newspapers exist because of the First Amendment to our Constitution, correct? How can they suppress the right of free association for others, when they enjoy the protection of the same Amendment, themselves? Isn't this discriminatory? (Although it is not expressly protected in the First Amendment, the Supreme Court ruled, in NAACP v. Alabama, 357 U.S. 449 (1958), freedom of association to be a fundamental right protected by it. In Boy Scouts of America v. Dale, 530 U.S. 640 (2000), the Supreme Court ruled that a New Jersey law, which forced the Boy Scouts of America to admit an openly gay member, to be an unconstitutional abridgment of the Boy Scouts' right to free association.)
You, as a Senator for our Territory, have many obligations and a very busy schedule, I understand. However, I believe that your immediate attention to this matter should be prioritized to coincide with the trouncing of the rights granted to all of our citizens, especially when those rights are so blatantly ignored and the citizens in question are being discriminated against.
In the 20th century, the Supreme Court held that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment applies the limitations of the First Amendment to each state, including any local government within a state....I believe that this also applies to the official Territories of the United States, am I correct?
My next course of action will be to take this up with the Nationally distributed news reporting agencies...If one of our citizens were forced to ride in the back of the bus, this would be National news....I refuse to see any difference between the two, and I believe that the Agencies, themselves, will also see this as a major suppression of our inalienable rights and discrimination of our citizens and will report this to the nation, as is their public responsibility.
My question to you, Senator, is "How will you respond to such a brazen disregard for your citizens rights and freedoms?"
I thank you in advance for your time and consideration and I look forward to your reply.
Warmest regards,
List of e-mail addresses:
28th Legislature Senator's Contact Information
Senator Telephone # E-Mail Address
Craig Barshinger 340-774-0880 Ext 3546 cbarshinger@legvi.org
Adlah Donastorg 340-774-0880 Ext 3515 adonastorg@legvi.org
Carlton Dowe 340-774-0880 Ext 3686 cdowe@legvi.org
Louis Hill 340-774-0880 Ext 3616 lhill@legvi.org
Neville James 340-774-0880 Ext 3588 njames3033@yahoo.com
Wayne James 340-774-0880 Ext 3600 wjames@legvi.org
Shawn-Michiael Malone 340-774-0880 Ext 3529 smmalone1@yahoo.com
Terrance Nelson 340-774-0880 Ext 3655 positive_1@hotmail.com
Usie Richards 340-774-0880 Ext 3569 senatorrichards@hotmail.com
Nellie Rivera-O'Reilley 340-774/0880 Ext 3507 noreilley@legvi.org
Sammuel Sanes 340-774-0880 Ext 3566 ssanes@legvi.org
Patrick Simeon Sprauve 340-774-0880 Ext 3513 senatorp.sprauve@gmail.com
Michael Thurland 340-774-0880 Ext 3618 senatormichaelthurland@msn.com
Celestino White 340-774-0880 Ext 3567 cwhite@legvi.org
Alvin Williams 340-774-0880 Ext 3517 awilliams@legvi.org
http://www.myspace.com/usvinorml
Marty, businesses don't surpress the 1st amendment.
That may be your position and you are entitled to it...however, NORML has many lawyers in it's ranks and they have advised us in this regard. Thank you for your thoughts.
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