Protests in malls kind of free speech training, court says

Protests in malls kind of free speech training, court says

A California court ruled Monday that protesters can not be stopped by privately owned shopping malls from demonstrating there to urge a boycott of one of the tenants.

The California Supreme Court said that a San Diego mall had violated California free speech law by barring protesters from distributing leaflets in front of one of the mall’s stores, asking shoppers not to give the store their business.

It is clear that the protesters couldn’t choose time worse for the shop owner than the Xmas sales season – the best earning time for the retailers.

But the judge said that malls were the public places where people could train their right to free speech.