America was born in protest. In fact, we might never have separated from Great Britain, were it not for a list of grievances written into our Declaration of Independence 249 years ago.

The 13 British colonies had had enough of the arbitrary actions of King George III and peaceably advised him so in that treasured document. Several years later, with those grievances in mind and in hopes of preventing a recurrence of lawless actions by America’s new government, our ancestors wrote up a Constitution and Bill of Rights. Our First Amendment guaranteed “the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.” The First Amendment stands out as a principal protection against arbitrary king-like rule.

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