Keyishian v. Board of Regents
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''Keyishian v. Board of Regents'', 385 U.S. 589 (1967), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that states cannot prohibit employees from being members of the Communist Party and that this law was overbroad and too vague.


Background

New York State had laws that prohibited state employees from belonging to any organization that advocated the overthrow of the US government or was "treasonous" or "seditious." The regents of the
State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by c ...
also required teachers and employees to sign an oath that they were not members of the Communist Party. Some faculty and staff of the University were terminated for refusing to sign the oath and appealed to the Supreme Court.


Decision

The Supreme Court, in a 5–4 decision, overturned the New York state laws prohibiting membership in seditious groups because it was too vague and was overbroad. That largely reversed the 1952 decision in ''Adler v. Board of Education'', in which
Irving Adler Irving Adler (April 27, 1913 – September 22, 2012) was an American author, mathematician, scientist, political activist, and educator. He was the author of 57 books (some under the pen name Robert Irving) about mathematics, science, and e ...
had been dismissed for the New York City public school system because of a previous connection with the
Communist Party USA The Communist Party USA, officially the Communist Party of the United States of America (CPUSA), is a communist party in the United States which was established in 1919 after a split in the Socialist Party of America following the Russian Revo ...
.


See also

*
List of United States Supreme Court cases involving the First Amendment This is a list of cases that appeared before the Supreme Court of the United States involving the First Amendment to the United States Constitution. The establishment of religion Blue laws * '' McGowan v. Maryland'' (1961) * ''Braunfeld v. B ...
* List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 385


References


External links

* *
Heins, Marjorie. (2012, January 23). "The Keyishian Ruling: 45 Years Later,"
Academe Blog
Wilson, John K. (2012, January 23). "Interview with Harry Keyishian,"
Academe Blog {{US1stAmendment, speech, state=collapsed 1967 in United States case law American Civil Liberties Union litigation United States Free Speech Clause case law United States Supreme Court cases State University of New York Anti-communism in the United States Communist Party USA litigation United States lawsuits United States Supreme Court cases of the Warren Court