Freedom of assembly

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File:Themeeting.jpg
"Sammankomsten" ("The Meeting"), oil painting by sv (Ester Almqvist), original at the Swedish National Museum. the painting was chosen by the UN as a motif for a stamp commemorating the establishment of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, paragraph 20: the Right of Assembly
File:Janitor strike santa monica.jpg
Janitorial workers striking in front of the MTV building in Santa Monica, California. Striking in a trade union is a way of exercising freedom of assembly and freedom of association.

After some long years of oppression by the Crown leading up to the Revolutionary War those who suffered the insult of the denial of fundamental rights were unwilling to trust the blood spend upon the field of battle which secured liberty to the wiles of any political class which might establish itself in the halls of government. A union of any people ought to be secure in coming together for any common purpose which furthers the general welfare. The Freedom of assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right or ability to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue, and defend their ideas.[1] The right to freedom of association is recognized as a human right, political right and civil liberty.

Freedom of assembly and freedom of association may be used to distinguish between the freedom to assemble in public places and the freedom of joining an association. Freedom of assembly is often used in the context of the right to protest, while freedom of association is used in the context of labor rights and the Constitution of the United States, is interpreted to mean both the freedom to assemble and the freedom to join an association.[2][not in citation given]

The United States Constitution explicitly provides for 'the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances'" in the First Amendment.

Common constraints on the right to assemble are a class of time place manner regulations. A second type of constraint is the requirement to obtain a permit, where coordination may be needed to ensure public safety.

Human rights instruments

The freedom of assembly is written about in the following human rights instruments:

Examples of the national and regional constitutions recognizing the freedom of assembly are:

See also

References

  1. Jeremy McBride, Freedom of Association, in The Essentials of... Human Rights, Hodder Arnold, London, 2005, pg.18-20
  2. Freedom Of Assembly
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External links