Freedom of speech is protected in the First Amendment of the Bill of Rights and is guaranteed to all Americans. The New Hampshire Constitution states that free speech is “essential to the security of freedom in a state.”

Freedom of speech, of the press, of association, of assembly and petition – this set of guarantees, protected by the First Amendment – comprises what we refer to as freedom of expression. The Supreme Court has written that this freedom is “the matrix, the indispensable condition of nearly every other form of freedom.” Without it, other fundamental rights like the right to vote, would wither and die. The ACLU of New Hampshire is committed to protecting the freedom of speech for all people in the state of New Hampshire.