Legal Definitions - viewpoint discrimination

Viewpoint discrimination occurs when a government entity or public institution restricts speech not because of the general subject matter, but because it disapproves of the specific message, opinion, or perspective being expressed on that subject. It is a form of censorship that targets particular ideas or beliefs, even if other viewpoints on the same topic are permitted. This type of discrimination is generally prohibited under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, as it undermines the free exchange of ideas in a democratic society.

Here are some examples to illustrate viewpoint discrimination:

• Imagine a public university that designates a specific bulletin board for student organizations to post flyers about campus events and social issues. The university allows flyers promoting environmental sustainability initiatives, but explicitly prohibits any flyers that advocate for the use of fossil fuels or question climate change science, stating that such views are "contrary to the university's values."

  This is viewpoint discrimination because the university permits discussion on the general topic of environmental issues but selectively bans a particular perspective (pro-fossil fuels/climate change skepticism) while allowing opposing viewpoints.

• Consider a city council that establishes a program to fund community murals, with the stated goal of "beautifying public spaces and celebrating local history." They receive two proposals: one for a mural depicting the city's diverse immigrant communities and their contributions, and another for a mural celebrating the city's colonial founders and their legacy. The council approves the immigrant community mural but rejects the colonial founders mural, stating that it "promotes an outdated and exclusionary narrative."

  This constitutes viewpoint discrimination because the city is allowing murals on local history but is rejecting a specific historical perspective (colonial founders' legacy) while approving a different one (immigrant contributions), based on its disapproval of the message conveyed by the rejected proposal.

• A public library offers meeting rooms for community groups to hold discussions on various topics. The library permits groups to discuss local zoning laws, urban development, and property rights. However, when a group advocating for stricter rent control policies attempts to reserve a room, their request is denied by the library director, who states, "We don't host groups that promote policies that could harm property owners."

  This is an example of viewpoint discrimination because the library allows discussions on property-related issues but denies access to a group based on their specific stance (stricter rent control) on that issue, while presumably allowing groups with opposing or different viewpoints.