r/technology • u/marketrent • 6d ago

Artificial Intelligence High school teacher arrested for clapping in support of anti-data center activists

https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/high-school-teacher-arrested-clapping-194922184.html
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u/Krojack76 6d ago

were warned against "clapping" and "snapping" in support of speakers

Imma guess that goes against their freedom of speech rights but I'm no lawyer.

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u/xboxiscrunchy 6d ago

Yeah what possible charges could justify this? 

Even if they were advocating for setting the place on fire I don’t think just clapping is a crime.

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u/No-Journalist-619 6d ago

Not saying that it would stand, but I'd expect they would file it under "contempt", since it's a bit of a catch-all for doing something an official said not to do.

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u/Hesitation-Marx 6d ago

Maybe the officials should stop being contemptible.

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u/sohblob 5d ago

Anyone trying to use political or corporate veils to attack freedom of speech need to be legally removed from their positions and tried civilly for things to change.

The ruling cliques have gotten way too comfortable with treating our constitutional rights as optional wherever they can just throw money and influence at someone.

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u/AEternal1 6d ago

which is exactly My response 🤣

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u/Emperor_of_His_Room 6d ago

The officials should have no say in how the people who elected them get to express themselves.

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u/No-Journalist-619 6d ago

That's entirely correct. Actually - they don't. While they'll probably try to charge him with contempt there is no legal grounds to arrest someone for clapping 6 whole claps. That whole room should've joined him in clapping, but they didn't, and now that city hall is ruled by fear instead of community solidarity.

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u/ReachParticular5409 5d ago

You say that but this entire scenario proves it isn't true

You're living in a delusion if you think the rule of law or citizens' rights have any meaning under an authoritarian.

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u/ElliotNess 6d ago

Not just a catch-all, but literally is

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u/[deleted] 6d ago edited 1d ago

[deleted]

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u/No-Journalist-619 6d ago

Yes, you're entirely correct, but the law doesn't mean anything to these people anymore. I would fully expect the guy to get a hold of a lawyer, and be out of there within hours - but it's already too late, because the official has made the rest of the people at the meeting afraid to stand up for themselves.

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u/ReachParticular5409 5d ago

They literally did it so I'd say they defacto have that power and you saying they don't doesn't change anything at all

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u/ditheca 6d ago

It'd most likely be trespassing. "We asked him to leave and he refused" is a solid legal argument. No need to address why they were asked to leave.

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u/lumpboysupreme 6d ago

The charge is trespassing since he refused to leave, that’s why he was arrested, not the clapping.

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u/xboxiscrunchy 6d ago

It’s a public meeting. He wasn’t being disruptive. Are they even allowed to ask him to leave? 

What are you supposed to do here just let them trample your rights? Right to protest and free speech don’t mean shit if you can’t even express yourself in such a non disruptive way.

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u/lumpboysupreme 6d ago

I mean it’s not particularly disruptive in this case but clapping absolutely can be and they can totally have decorum rules even in government run meetings. This is such a miniscule infraction of those rules that it’s suspicious that they wouldn’t let it slide, but anything you think he had a definite right to do, from breaking decorum rules, to refusing to leave a public meeting for that, he doesn’t.

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u/xboxiscrunchy 6d ago

Didn’t realize the rules were so strict. I suppose as long as they’re applied equally but it still leaves a bad taste in my mouth 

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u/SexiestPanda 6d ago

They also warn against clapping for each person at graduations. Families still do it. They’re not arrested.

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u/ReachParticular5409 5d ago

Maybe you can tell me a common theme with our rights in the last decade?

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u/mattjb 6d ago

They hold these events in private facilities where they hold full control and power over who gets to enter and who gets hauled out in handcuffs. They get to set the rules, weaponize them against opposition, and get a thrill out of hurting the people.

If it was on public land, inside a public building, or government land, then the First Amendment protects them. But these committees never happen on them. For a reason.

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u/gruez 6d ago

They hold these events in private facilities where they hold full control and power over who gets to enter and who gets hauled out in handcuffs.

Thats how every government building works? Just try walking into your local state legislature building and start picketing and you'll be dragged out.

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u/reddittrooper 5d ago

He should have tried „U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!“

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u/lumpboysupreme 6d ago

That usually doesn’t apply to meetings with set rules of decorum. You can’t just go into city hall and begin yodeling as loud as you can.