''American Family Association v. City and County of San Francisco'' is a case in which the

American Family Association The American Family Association (AFA) is a Christian fundamentalist 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States.

City and County of San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

's actions opposing an AFA sponsored advertisement campaign as a violation of the

First Amendment to the United States Constitution The First Amendment (Amendment I) to the United States Constitution prevents the government from making laws that regulate an establishment of religion, or that prohibit the free exercise of religion, or abridge the freedom of speech, the ...

. In 1998, a full-page advertisement regarding homosexuality and Christianity was placed in the ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...

'' as part of the nationwide "Truth in Love" campaign by several

Christian right The Christian right, or the religious right, are Christian political factions characterized by their strong support of socially conservative and traditionalist policies. Christian conservatives seek to influence politics and public policy with t ...

organizations. The advertisement stated, "God abhors any form of sexual sin," including homosexuality, and further stated that many people have walked out of homosexuality into sexual celibacy and marriage through the help of

Jesus Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. The advertisement was labeled by the City and County of San Francisco as "hateful rhetoric," which incites

hate crime A hate crime (also known as a bias-motivated crime or bias crime) is a prejudice-motivated crime which occurs when a perpetrator targets a victim because of their membership (or perceived membership) of a certain social group or racial demograph ...

s. San Francisco officials discouraged local TV and radio stations from running Truth in Love advertisements. In October 1999, the AFA filed the suit against the City and County of San Francisco with support from

Family Research Council The Family Research Council (FRC) is an American evangelical activist group and think-tank with an affiliated lobbying organization. FRC promotes what it considers to be family values. It opposes and lobbies against: access to pornography, emb ...

and

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

based Kerusso Ministries. The suit claims the City and County of San Francisco violated the

First Amendment First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

Establishment Clause In United States law, the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution, together with that Amendment's Free Exercise Clause, form the constitutional right of freedom of religion. The relevant constitutional text ...

by expressing hostility towards a religion and violated the First Amendment's

Free Speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been ...

and Free Exercise clauses by the city's attempt to prevent "Truth in Love" advertisements. In June 2000,

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

District court ruled the Defendant's actions did not violate the First Amendment and stated the City and County of San Francisco was only doing its duty to address public safety by encouraging local media not to run the advertisements. The AFA appealed the decision and the

United States District Court for the Northern District of California The United States District Court for the Northern District of California (in case citations, N.D. Cal.) is the federal United States district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of California: Alameda, Contra Costa, Del ...

affirmed the District court ruling. The majority opinion was written by

Michael Daly Hawkins Michael Daly Hawkins (born February 12, 1945) is a Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Early life and education Born in Winslow, Arizona, Hawkins received his Bachelor of Arts degree ...

and the dissenting/concurring opinion was written by

John T. Noonan, Jr. John Thomas Noonan Jr. (October 24, 1926 – April 17, 2017) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Personal and education Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Noonan attended the John D. Runkl ...

Background

On October 19, 1998, the

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

Board of Supervisors, led by Leslie Katz, wrote a letter to the AFA in response to an ad placed in the newspaper. The letter stated: During the same time, the

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

and

County of San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

passed two resolutions. The first resolution was summarized by Judge Hawkins as: The second resolution was summarized by Judge Hawkins as:

Footnotes

References

AMERICAN FAMILY ASSOCIATION, INC.; DONALD WILDMON; KERUSSO MINISTRIES; FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL V. CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO; LESLIE KATZ, in her capacity as a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors

United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (in case citations, 9th Cir.) is the U.S. federal court of appeals that has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * District ...

. Retrieved on 2007-06-24.
alternative link

Center for Law and Policy, Active Cases

American Family Association The American Family Association (AFA) is a Christian fundamentalist 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States.

. Retrieved on 2006-07-01.
archived link

Religious groups can't sue city for condemning anti-gay ads

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...

(published o
Freedom Forum
. 2002-01-17 Retrieved on 2007-06-01.
archived link

Judge: San Francisco Had Duty To Call Christians Ads Hate Speech
.

Catholic World News Catholic World News (CWN) is an online independent news service founded in 1996 by Philip F. Lawler providing news concerning the Catholic Church. Staffed by lay Catholic journalists, its editorial policy is generally conservative with an emphas ...

(2000-06-29). Retrieved on 2007-11-05. {{US1stAmendment Discrimination in California Ex-gay movement Legal history of San Francisco Establishment Clause case law United States free exercise of religion case law United States Free Speech Clause case law LGBT and Protestantism American Family Association United States LGBT rights case law 2002 in United States case law 2002 in LGBT history 2002 in religion 2002 in San Francisco

Background

See also

Footnotes

References