Brandenburg v. Ohio 1969

Could Ohio convict a Ku Klux Klan leader for advocating violence at a rally?

395 U.S. 444 (1969)Speech and press

The question: Could Ohio convict a Ku Klux Klan leader for advocating violence at a rally?
What the Court held: No. Advocacy of force may be punished only when directed to inciting imminent lawless action and likely to produce it.
The vote: 8–0. Per curiam.
Overruled: Whitney v. California (1927), 42 years earlier.
Era: Civil rights and Vietnam
Read the opinion: 395 U.S. 444 (1969), full text

This page summarizes the Court’s judgment in neutral terms. The opinion, concurrences and dissents are the authority; read them for the reasoning.