Lovell V. City of Griffin 

Background Information 
Jehovah's  Witnesses are known for their daily activity of going 'door-to-door' preaching. The case against Alma Lovell, February 4th 1938, was that she was violating the City of Griffin's ordinance that states, "the practice of distributing, either by hand or otherwise, circulars, handbooks, advertising, or literature of any kind, whether said articles are being delivered free, or whether same are being sold, within the limits of the City of Griffin, without first obtaining written permission from the city manager of the City of Griffin, such practice shall be deemed a nuisance, and punishable as an offense against the City of Griffin." This ordinance was deemed unconstitutional since it violated the first amendment of freedom of press and freedom to practice religion. 


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Lovell v. City of Griffin Freedom of Press The first amendment which protects freedom of the press is said to not be confined to simply newspapers and periodicals. Freedom of the press expands to including pamphlets and leaflets which are the main source of literature for door-to-door preaching. Lovell as well as the many Jehovah's Witnesses, in Griffin and other cities that prohibited their practice, right to freedom of the Press was being violated since they couldn't preach with pamphlets known as 'tracts.' Since the supreme court got involved with this case, it aided the rest of the Jehovah's Witnesses in the country who were also struggling with oppression from the law. The victory, in this case, is seen as an example of how Jehovah helps his 'people' during turbulent times. 
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Lovell v. City of Griffin Court Case  Lovell explains that her duty as a Jehovah's Witness and servant of Jehovah, God, "she regarded herself as sent 'by Jehovah to do his work' and that such an application would have been 'an act of disobedience to His commandments.'" Her rights to freedom to practice religion allow her to go door-to-door knocking, as it is a part of her practice in 'doing His (God) work.' Congress responded by saying, " Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof, or abridging the freedom of speech or of the press; or the right of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." The final decision was that the ordinance of the City of Griffin was unconstitutional and violated Lovell's rights to practice religion and peaceably assemble. The Ordinance was not limited to "literature" that is obsc...
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