27. Preserve Our First Amendment Right to Free Speech

WHEREAS respect for the civil liberties guaranteed by the United States Constitution in our Bill of Rights is a fundamental tenet of democracy; and

WHEREAS the Republican Bush Administration has attempted to suppress the rights of American citizens to free speech and peaceable assembly by herding those with views adverse to the Republican Party into distant and isolated “protest zones” locations; now

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Democratic Party of the State of Hawai`i (of the United States of America) hereby condemns Republican attempts to eviscerate our Bill of Rights, and affirmatively pledges that the Democratic Party shall never seek to exclude or isolate the views of American citizens by establishing separate “protest” zones to restrict the rights of citizens to be heard or otherwise restrict citizen’s rights at any of its political gathering; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this resolution does not purport to prohibit the Democratic Party from making such rules as are necessary and proper for the orderly and non-discriminatory running of its political gatherings.