Freedom of assembly

Right to form social or political groups and hold meetings

"Sammankomsten" ("The Meeting"), oil painting by Ester Almqvist, original at the Swedish National Museum. The painting was chosen by the UN as a motif for a stamp commemorating the establishment of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, paragraph 20: the Right of Assembly.

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Freedom of peaceful assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right or ability of people to come together and collectively express, promote, pursue, and defend their collective or shared ideas.^[2] The right to freedom of association is recognized as a human right, a political right and a civil liberty.

The terms freedom of assembly and freedom of association may be used to distinguish between the freedom to assemble in public places and the freedom to join an association. Freedom of assembly is often used in the context of the right to protest, while freedom of association is used in the context of labor rights and in the Constitution of the United States is interpreted to mean both the freedom to assemble and the freedom to join an association.^[3]

Human rights instruments

Freedom of assembly is included in, among others, the following human rights instruments:

Universal Declaration of Human Rights – Article 20
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights – Article 21
European Convention on Human Rights – Article 11
American Convention on Human Rights – Article 15

National and regional constitutions that recognize freedom of assembly include:

Bangladesh – Articles 37 and 38 of the Constitution of Bangladesh guarantee the freedom of association and assembly.^[4]
Brazil – Article 5 of the Constitution of Brazil
Canada – S. 2 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms which forms part of the Constitution Act, 1982
France – Article 431-1 of the Nouveau Code Pénal
Germany – Article 8 GG (Grundgesetz, Basic Law)
Hungary – Article VIII (1) of the Fundamental Law
India – Article 19 of the Constitution of India
Indonesia – Article 28E(3) of the Constitution of Indonesia
Ireland – Article 40.6.1° of the Constitution, as enumerated under the heading "Fundamental Rights"^[5]^[6]
Italy – Article 17 of the Constitution^[7]
Japan – Article 21 of the Constitution of Japan
Macau Basic Law - Article 27
Malaysia – Article 10 of the Constitution of Malaysia
Mexico – Article 9 of the Constitution of Mexico
Netherlands - Articles 8 and 9 of the Constitution of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
New Zealand – Section 16 New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990
Norway – Section 101 of the Constitution of Norway
Pakistan - Article 16 of the Constitution of Pakistan, 1973
Philippines – Article III, Section 4 of the Constitution of the Philippines
Poland – Article 57 of the Constitution of Poland
Russia – Articles 30 and 31 of the Constitution of Russia guarantee the freedom of association and peaceful assembly.^[8]
South Africa Bill of Rights – Article 17
Spain – Article 21 of the Spanish Constitution of 1978
Sweden – Chapter 2 of The Instrument of Government^[9]
Taiwan (Republic of China) – Article 14 guarantees freedom of assembly and association.
Turkey – Articles 33 and 34 of the Constitution of Turkey guarantee the freedom of association and assembly.
UAE – Article 33 of the Constitution of the UAE
United States – First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States
Venezuela – Article 68 of the Constitution of Venezuela^[10]

References

^ California Vehicle Code § 21950(b): "No pedestrian may unnecessarily stop or delay traffic while in a marked or unmarked crosswalk."
^ Jeremy McBride, Freedom of Association, in The Essentials of... Human Rights, Hodder Arnold, London, 2005, pp. 18–20
^ See: NAACP v. Claiborne Hardware Co., 458 U.S. 898 (1982); Healey v. James, 408 U.S. 169 (1972); Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen v. Virginia, 377 U.S. 1 (1964); United Mine Workers v. Illinois State Bar Assn., 389 U.S. 217 (1967).
^ "Constitution of Bangladesh: Chapter III". Prime Minister's Office. Archived from the original on 24 May 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2011.
^ Citizensinformation.ie. "Fundamental Rights under the Irish Constitution". www.citizensinformation.ie. Retrieved 2018-03-03.
^ "Constitution of Ireland". Irish Statute Book. Retrieved 2018-03-03.
^ "The Italian Constitution" (PDF). The official website of the Presidency of the Italian Republic. Archived from the original on 2016-11-27.
^ "Constitution of Russia: Article 30". Adopted at National Voting on December 12, 1993.
^ Riksdagsförvaltningen. "Kungörelse (1974:152) om beslutad ny regeringsform Svensk författningssamling 1974:1974:152 t.o.m. SFS 2018:1903 - Riksdagen". www.riksdagen.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 2020-04-13.
^ Situación de la criminalización y represión en Venezuela- 2018 (PDF) (in Spanish). Caracas, Venezuela: Observatorio Venezolano de Conflictividad Social (published February 2019). 17 December 2023.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Freedom of assembly.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Freedom of assembly.

Guidelines on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly OSCE/ODIHR, 2007
- Guidelines on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly (2nd edition) Venice Commission and OSCE/ODIHR, 2010

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v t e Substantive human rights
What is considered a human right is in some cases controversial; not all the topics listed are universally accepted as human rights
Civil and political	Equality before the law Freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention Freedom of assembly Freedom of association Cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment Freedom from discrimination Freedom of information Freedom of movement Freedom of religion Freedom from slavery Freedom of speech Freedom of thought Freedom from torture Legal aid LGBT rights Liberty Nationality Personhood Presumption of innocence Right of asylum Right to die Right to a fair trial Right to family life Right to keep and bear arms Right to life Right to petition Right to privacy Right to protest Right to refuse medical treatment Right to resist Right of self-defense Right to truth Security of person Suffrage right to be a candidate Right to homeland
Economic, social and cultural	Digital rights Equal pay for equal work Fair remuneration Labor rights Right to an adequate standard of living Right to clothing Right to development Right to education Right to food Right to health Right to a healthy environment Right to housing Right to Internet access Right to property Right to public participation Right of reply Right to rest and leisure Right of return Right to science and culture Right to social security Right to water Right to work
Sexual and reproductive	Abortion Family planning Freedom from involuntary female genital mutilation Intersex human rights LGBT rights Sexual and reproductive health Right to sexuality
Violations	Crimes against humanity Genocide War crimes

U.S. Supreme Court Assemble and Petition Clause case law

1st Amendment to the United States Constitution

Freedom of assembly

Incorporation	United States v. Cruikshank (1876) Presser v. Illinois (1886)
Protection from prosecution and state restrictions	De Jonge v. Oregon (1937) Thomas v. Collins (1945) Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta (2021)

Freedom of association

Organizations	Joint Anti-Fascist Refugee Committee v. McGrath (1951) Watkins v. United States (1957) NAACP v. Alabama (1958) Bates v. City of Little Rock (1960) NAACP v. Button (1963) Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta (2021)
Future Conduct	Baggett v. Bullitt (1964)
Solicitation	In re Primus (1978)
Membership restriction	Hishon v. King & Spalding (1984) Roberts v. United States Jaycees (1984) Rotary Int'l v. Rotary Club of Duarte (1987) Dallas v. Stanglin (1989) Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston (1995) Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000) Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (2010)
Primaries and elections	Tashjian v. Republican Party (1986) Timmons v. Twin Cities Area New Party (1997) California Democratic Party v. Jones (2000) Clingman v. Beaver (2005) New York State Board of Elections v. Lopez Torres (2008) Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party (2008)