While warming up for their game on September 14, several Kansas City Chiefs players sported shirts with Rashee Rice’s photo and the phrase “Free 4.”[1] Such players included Travis Kelce and Tyquan Thornton. Rice, a wide receiver for the Chiefs, was suspended for six games for violating the NFL’s Personal Conduct Policy after he was involved in a high-speed crash in Dallas in March 2024, resulting in the injuries of four people. In July, Rice pled guilty to two felony charges and was sentenced to five years’ probation and 30 days in jail.[2]
Under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, Congress may not make a law prohibiting the free exercise of or abridging the freedom of speech.[3] Freedom of speech includes the right not to speak,[4] to use certain offensive words and phrases to convey political messages,[5] and to engage in symbolic speech. [6] However, speech is unprotected in the following circumstances: incitement, true threats, defamation, obscenity, child pornography, and fraud.[7] Additionally, free speech is limited in situations involving fighting words, hate speech, and in schools (if the speech disrupts the educational environment), as well as depending on the context of the speech, such as its location and audience.[8] Private employers, on the other hand, are permitted to limit speech as long as the limitation is applied unilaterally. Thus, both liberal and conservative commentary are prohibited.
While it is clear that the shirts worn by the Chiefs fall under the realm of free expression and free speech, the team is still facing backlash. A lawyer for one of the crash victims spoke out about Kelce’s shirt, stating, “Free Rashee? He already thinks he’s getting away scot-free. He’s not paid a single cent of the $1.1M [j]udgment he already owes our client, who is living anything but pain-free.”[9]
However, while the “Free 4” shirts clearly fall under the realm of free speech and free expression, there is a stark contrast between this and the backlash faced by athletes such as Colin Kaepernick and other athletes who knelt during the National Anthem in 2016.[10] Kaepernick stated that he would not “stand up and show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” and eventually, several other players joined him, but not without backlash from Donald Trump and other members of the public.[11] Upon the expiration of his contract, Kaepernick was not signed by another NFL team, leading to his allegation that he had been “blackballed” due to his comments. Kaepernick filed a grievance with the NFL, leading to an undisclosed settlement in 2019.[12]
Rice is eligible to return to play on October 19. Will either the NFL or the Kansas City Chiefs take action to quell what may be viewed by the victims of the accident as an insensitive expression of sentiment towards Rice?
[1] https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/andy-reid-downplays-travis-kelce-chiefs-wearing-free-4-shirts-for-suspended-rashee-rice/
[2] Id.
[3] https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-1/
[4] West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624 (1943)
[5] Cohen v. California, 403 U.S. 15 (1971).
[6] Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989).
[7] https://www.uscourts.gov/about-federal-courts/educational-resources/about-educational-outreach/activity-resources/what-does-free-speech-mean
[8] Id.
[9] https://www.cbsnews.com/texas/news/travis-kelce-rachee-rice-dallas-crash-lawyer-kansas-city-chiefs/
[10] https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/nfl/taking-a-knee-national-anthem-nfl-trump-why-meaning-origins-racism-us-colin-kaepernick-a8521741.html
[11] Id.
[12] https://www.nytimes.com/2019/03/21/sports/colin-kaepernick-nfl-settlement.html
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