Opinion ID: 470078
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Threat of Illegal Conduct

Text: 39 The Board urges the prospect of illegal conduct as a reason not to publish CARD's advertisement. In the Board's view, its publication would amount to advocacy of non-registration--an illegal act. 40 We agree, of course, that the Board has a strong interest in promoting law abiding conduct among its students. But we are unable to conclude that its prohibiting the publication of CARD's advertisement serves this interest. The Board bases its argument on the fact that the organization has styled itself The Committee Against Registration and the Draft. The Board further contends that the advertisement, when viewed in its entirety, advocates non-registration. 41 That the organization's name implies opposition to a particular law is not, in our view, sufficient to support a conclusion that the organization advocates unlawful conduct. Moreover, there is nothing in the text of the advertisement suggesting that CARD encourages non-registration. See supra, note 1. In fact, the record discloses that according to Superintendent Pyle the Board had no evidence that the purpose of the advertisement was to stop students from registering, and that the Board had derived such intent solely from a reading of the organization's name. 42 It is true that a state may act to prohibit individuals from advocating violations of the law when such advocacy is directed toward inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to accomplish that objective. See Brandenberg v. Ohio, 395 U.S. 444, 447, 89 S.Ct. 1827, 1829, 23 L.Ed.2d 430 (1969). But, in our system, undifferentiated fear or apprehension of disturbance is not enough to overcome the right to freedom of expression. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District, 393 U.S. 503, 508, 89 S.Ct. 733, 737, 21 L.Ed.2d 731 (1969). Mere speculation on the part of the state that individuals might at some time engage in illegal activity is insufficient to justify regulation. Gay Students Organization v. Bonner, 509 F.2d 652, 662 (1st Cir.1974). 43 The Board's conclusion that publication of CARD's advertisement would result in unlawful conduct was, at best, speculative. The record is devoid of any evidence that CARD advocated illegal conduct or that publication of the advertisement was likely to give rise to such conduct. To the contrary, the record indicates that CARD, through its advertisement, sought to apprise eligible students of legitimate and lawful alternatives to the draft, such as the availability of student deferments. Accordingly, we conclude that the Board's fear of illegal advocacy did not provide a reasonable basis for excluding CARD from the newspapers.