Chapter 3 takes a closer look at place-specific restrictions on public protest. It examines the rules that apply under the First Amendment’s “public forum” and “time, place, and manner” doctrines. These doctrines are the foundation for enforcement of public order laws, the zoning of protest, and the targeting of specific protest locations including healthcare facilities, abortion clinics, funerals, and residences. The chapter critically analyzes the basis for and scope of spatial restrictions on public protest and dissent.

Chapter 2 lays out the managerial system that applies to protest in the U.S. It uses a protest typology to describe the scope and limits of protesters’ rights under the First Amendment. The chapter identifies the public forum and time, place, manner, and other restrictions that limit protest activity. It addresses protest permits, policing tactics, enforcement of public order laws, limits on press activity at protests, and other elements of the “managed dissent” system. The chapter sets the stage for the book’s argument that public protest is over-managed in ways that make protest more costly, less safe, and less effective.