A government can choose to investigate the killing of a protester − or choose to blame the victim and pin it all on ‘domestic terrorism’

Renee Good’s death was the consequence, writes a First Amendment scholar, of a kind of politics in which the state survives by making dissenters illegitimate as citizens.

By: Stephanie A. (Sam) Martin, Boise State University, The Conversation

Outlets: The Conversation

Published: January 22, 2026

Words: 1,443

Last Updated: 1 month, 3 weeks ago

Body Text Preview

By Stephanie A. (Sam) Martin, Boise State University

The question the First Amendment keeps asking, across wars and panics and moral crusades, is whether a democracy can tolerate the possibility of persuasion.

There’s a certain school of thought that says no. Persuasion is too perilous.

I call this way of thinking “swallow-a-fly logic.” I’m referring, of course, to the popular children’s song where a woman ingests a fly and then keeps devouring bigger …

Create a free account to access this story and more

Join Plucky Wire to access full stories, collaborate with newsrooms, and discover content from networks around the world.

Email Us