Make public access areas on private property, such as shopping malls, open to political activity with laws supporting a presumption of the right to associate and assemble—to speak and to gather petition signatures. Under current law, private property owners routinely dictate who associates or assembles on all public access areas under their control. One result! Ballot access by petition is made very difficult for the nonpartisan independent majority.

How can one or two persons circulating petitions do anyone harm? Giving out flyers to people who request them is equally forbidden near to a store or far away in the middle or remote end of parking lots many times larger than a football field.

We are forbidden from talking to one another. Association is forbidden.

Freedom of speech means nothing if there is no place to speak. Nearly all of our universities have free speech areas where political flyers and petitions can be circulated. People are allowed to speak on any topic.

In urban areas and even in suburban and rural areas, corporate private property owners consistently block free speech activities involving association and assembly for any political purpose. They bar any political content on public bulletin boards. Generally, political speech is forbidden on private property in otherwise unrestricted public areas.

If anyone wants free speech in our society, must it be bought on commercial outlets, in the printed and broadcast media? Is there a bias that nothing should be free in our society? Should we be forced to pay for "free" speech?

Could this be direct blocking of political competition by the political parties in power and by the police authorities they control? Do they purposely eliminate the public political activity of citizens? Free speech? Do we unknowingly live in a police state? Do we live in a bipartisan political dictatorship?

Make the right to political activity, to free association, to free assembly, and to petition the government for the redress of grievances, a practical reality protected by city ordinance, by state law and by national law. (Top of Page)  

I am merely suggesting that we allow political activity in public access areas on private property, to include public access areas inside and outside of buildings. We could even require the provision of "free speech areas" on every commercial property with Large public access areas, even corporate headquarters. We should make that right a presumption in law. Petition activities and the limited assembly of persons required for such activities would be allowed, unless there is just cause, such as disorderly or unlawful conduct. Enforce the cessation of the specific unlawful activity, not "political speech." Free speech must take social precedence over the commercial self-interests of corporate property owners.

Property owners should have a duty to allow the freedoms guaranteed under our bill of rights. As privileged members of society, all property owners should have a duty to encourage free expression and the free exchange of ideas among all citizens in our open, free society.

To be reasonable, petition circulators should also be under several restraints to protect the business of the property owner while in modified control of the public access space used for limited petition and assembly purposes. For instance, amplified sound would not be allowed unless in a very remote area of a very large public access area not in use by pedestrian or motor traffic. No petition activity would be allowed within sixty feet, twenty paces, of any commercial entranceway or building included in the public access area. No pedestrian walkway would be constricted to less than twelve-feet, four paces, in width. Of course, petitioners would be individually liable under existing law for any damage arising from their activities, to include excessive or intentional littering.

In other words, property owners would not have the right to interfere with the constitutional rights of people based upon personal disagreement or mere resistance to change. Public areas where citizens can go to discuss or act upon public matters are severely limited in our motorized society. Public access areas on private property can be one focal point for our citizens to actively participate in our democratic republic. (Top of Page)  

A Practical Example: Free Speech Denied The stadium sales-tax issue in Hamilton County. Local civil authorities and the owners of pubic access areas (mostly shopping centers) all over Hamilton county nearly shut down all petition activities against the sales tax. The owners asked petition circulators to leave because they disagreed with the petition. The owners wanted publicly financed stadium construction. They aggressively called police all over the county.

The right of the people to petition their government was denied. Petition circulators were threatened with arrest if they stayed on public access areas available to everyone else. The right to assemble or associate was consistently denied all over Hamilton County. Free speech was denied.

Free speech that is denied to one is free speech denied to all.

The Internet is one large free speech area that so far is not under corporate political control. Internet freedom can be used to gain wider political freedom.

The bipartisan two-party monopoly, Democrats and Republicans, can be counted upon to secretly shut down free political speech anywhere and everywhere public notice can be avoided. Can you be counted upon to openly fight for your constitutional rights? Join the nonpartisan political movement to make freedom and  a democratic republic a reality in your community. (Top of Page)

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Elect "Rich." You win. We all win. Rich is on your ballot for KY District Three Representative to the U.S. Congress on November 06, 2018. You must be proactive in this election campaign to have your voice heard in the U.S. Congress.

Elect nonpartisan independent candidates on your ballot. We all win if you apply term limits in the voting booth to all Incumbent public office holders. Career politicians do harm to our dreams of freedom and a democratic republic. As the years pass, incumbent politicians serve only their political party and other special interests that support their personal political ambitions.