Civics: Illinois Free Speech Litigation
Illinois law now forbids employers from discussing ‘religious or political matters’ with employees. The Illinois Policy Institute is suing because that restriction on its free speech threatens its ability to operate.
The Illinois Policy Institute is suing in federal court over a new state law that denies its First Amendment right to communicate with its employees.
The lawsuit states Senate Bill 3649, or the “Worker Freedom of Speech Act,” would effectively revokeemployers’ right to free speech across the state by criminalizing discussions of political or religious matters during meetings. The law takes effect Jan. 1.
“Illinois has enacted a law that prohibits speech based solely on its content, political or religious,” said Jeffrey Schwab, senior counsel at the Liberty Justice Center, which is representing the institute. “The Supreme Court has held that such content-based prohibitions are presumptively invalid. For that reason, SB 3649 should be held unconstitutional.”
