{"id":944,"date":"2011-08-19T20:07:18","date_gmt":"2011-08-20T00:07:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/faithandjustice\/?p=944"},"modified":"2011-08-18T18:35:18","modified_gmt":"2011-08-18T22:35:18","slug":"jay-sekulow-free-speech-victory-in-pittsburgh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/08\/jay-sekulow-free-speech-victory-in-pittsburgh.html","title":{"rendered":"Jay Sekulow: Free Speech Victory in Pittsburgh"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>It’s official. The City of Pittsburgh has repealed<\/a> a troubling ordinance that banned the distribution of pro-life leaflets.<\/p>\n

As you may recall, last month I told you that this repeal effort was moving forward<\/a> and now our legal team has received confirmation that the problematic law is now off the books – once and for all.<\/p>\n

We filed a federal lawsuit last fall on behalf of two pro-life advocates who wanted to distribute leaflets in the City prior to last November’s election. A federal court granted our motion for an injunction halting the enforcement of the ordinance, which the City claimed was needed to control littering. In a decision, posted here<\/a>, a federal judge noted that “Supreme Court decisions [s]uggest that preventing littering is simply not a sufficiently significant interest to preclude leafleting.”<\/p>\n

In recent months, we have focused on efforts to permanently resolve this case. The City agreed to pay $35,000 in attorneys’ fees to settle the suit and agreed to repeal the ordinance. City Council approved legislation repealing it and the Mayor now has signed off on the action. A copy of the City’s resolution confirming the repeal is posted here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

We knew from the very beginning that this ordinance, which restricted leafleting in the City, violated the First Amendment free speech rights of all Pittsburghers. We’re extremely pleased that this ordinance has been repealed and that Pittsburghers can once again exercise their free speech rights through the distribution of leaflets without the fear of being fined.<\/p>\n

This has generated quite a bit of media coverage in the Pittsburgh area. Even one influential newspaper\u00a0understood that this ordinance was wrong and needed to go. In an editorial entitled – “Speech is speech: Pittsburgh must remove an offensive ban” – the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette concluded<\/a>:<\/p>\n

“The purpose of the 2008 ordinance was to restrict leafleting in the interests of curbing littering. In a city where litter is a problem, especially Downtown, the ordinance made some superficial sense. But what seems a potential source of litter to one person is free speech to another — and that right isn’t superficial, it’s fundamental.” As the Post-Gazette put it: “It doesn’t matter whether the speech takes a position that is pro-life or pro-choice – it’s all protected.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Yes, it did take a federal lawsuit to get this resolved. Thanks to our supporters at the ACLJ, we’re able to take whatever action is needed to protect the First Amendment rights of Americans – in this case – a couple of pro-life advocates who wanted to exercise their free speech rights at election time. You can receive updates on our\u00a0pro-life work by visiting the Jay Sekulow<\/a> page on our website<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It’s official. The City of Pittsburgh has repealed a troubling ordinance that banned the distribution of pro-life leaflets. As you may recall, last month I told you that this repeal effort was moving forward and now our legal team has received confirmation that the problematic law is now off the books – once and for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":401,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[141,164,4,29,66],"tags":[743,155,776,200,791,223,227,297,226],"class_list":["post-944","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-first-amendment","category-freedom","category-justice","category-pro-life","category-u-s-constitution","tag-aclj","tag-federal-lawsuit","tag-first-amendment","tag-free-speech","tag-jay-sekulow","tag-pittsburgh","tag-pro-life-advocates","tag-pro-life-message","tag-repeal-ordinance"],"yoast_head":"\nJay Sekulow: Free Speech Victory in Pittsburgh - Faith & Justice<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/2011\/08\/jay-sekulow-free-speech-victory-in-pittsburgh.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Jay Sekulow: Free Speech Victory in Pittsburgh - Faith & Justice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It’s official. The City of Pittsburgh has repealed a troubling ordinance that banned the distribution of pro-life leaflets. 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He is also Chief Counsel of the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ). Jay Sekulow is one of the leading defenders of constitutional rights and religious liberties in the United States. Over the past 25 years, Jay Sekulow has amassed an unparalleled record of accomplishment, arguing before the U.S. Supreme Court on 12 occasions. His aggressive litigation strategy before the Supreme Court has led to many landmark First Amendment victories. In his first case before the Supreme Court, Jews for Jesus, Jay Sekulow secured the right of religious groups to pass out tracks in airports. In Mergens, Jay Sekulow successfully protected the right of students to form Bible clubs and prayer groups on public school campuses. In Lamb\u2019s Chapel, Jay Sekulow cleared the way for churches to have equal access to public facilities in the same way that other groups are permitted to utilize those facilities. In the Bray and Operation Rescue cases, Jay Sekulow protected the free speech rights of pro-life advocates to be free from criminal prosecution for conveying their pro-life message. In McConnell v. FEC, Jay Sekulow protected the right of young people to engage in the political process by donating to the campaign of their choice. In Pleasant Grove, Jay Sekulow paved the way for governments to be able to display Ten Commandments monuments, and other monuments of their choosing, in public parks. Through the ACLJ, Jay Sekulow engages the political, legal, and cultural battles facing America today. He routinely works with Members of Congress, advising them on proposed legislation and representing them in critical legal matters. Jay Sekulow has also testified before Congress on the constitutionality of proposed legislation. Also, in addition to being a successful Supreme Court advocate, Jay Sekulow is a highly respected broadcaster. Jay Sekulow is the host of Jay Sekulow Live! which airs each weekday on over 850 radio stations nationwide, in addition Sirius and XM satellite radio. He brings insight and education to listeners daily through this national call-in radio program. He is also the host of the ACLJ This Week, the ACLJ\u2019s weekly television program. Jay Sekulow regularly appears on major media outlets, including FOX News, CNN, ABC, CBS, and NBC, where he is sought out for his vast experience in constitutional law and his unique insight into many of the pressing legal and political issues facing America today. He is frequently quoted in the nation's leading newspapers and often contributes opinion editorials to national publications. Jay Sekulow has also published numerous law review and other scholarly articles. Jay Sekulow has received numerous honors for his groundbreaking legal work in the area of free speech and religious liberties. The Legal Times has named Sekulow one of \u201cThe 90 Greatest Washington Lawyers of the Last 30 Years\u201d and the National Law Journal has twice named Sekulow one of the \u201c100 Most Influential Lawyers\u201d in the United States. In addition, TIME Magazine listed Jay Sekulow as one of the \"25 Most Influential Evangelicals\" in America. Jay Sekulow\u2019s legal work in defense of religious liberties and human rights extends beyond the United States, having founded the ECLJ in Strasbourg, France, which maintains consultative status with the United Nations. He has also opened offices in Pakistan, Africa, and Jerusalem, Israel. Jay Sekulow is a staunch defender of Israel, presenting arguments before the International Criminal Court at the Hague. His efforts in support of Israel\u2019s right to defend itself from terrorist attacks have been commended by Israeli government officials, one official stating, \"Jay was instrumentally-involved in projects that the President of Israel and the Prime Minister put on our national agenda.\" Jay Sekulow also has a passion for educating the next generation of religious liberty advocates. He is a member of the Regent University Law School Faculty as a Distinguished Professor of Law and routinely teaches courses on constitutional law and presents guest lectures. Jay Sekulow has also started educational programs in international human rights law in Strasbourg, France and at Handong University in South Korea. Jay Sekulow is a graduate of Mercer University, earning both a bachelor\u2019s degree and doctor of jurisprudence. Sekulow served on the editorial staff of the Mercer Law Review and graduated cum laude. He later earned a Ph.D. from Regent University, writing his dissertation on American Legal History. Jay Sekulow also serves on the Board of Trustees for The Supreme Court Historical Society in Washington, D.C. Jay Sekulow, ACLJ Chief Counsels full biography and video. Jay Sekulow on Facebook. Jay Sekulow on Twitter. Jay Sekulow on YouTube.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/author\/jay_sekulow"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/401"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=944"}],"version-history":[{"count":26,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":981,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/944\/revisions\/981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=944"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=944"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/faithandjustice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=944"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}