Hague v. Committee for Industrial Organization
United States Supreme Court
307 U.S. 496 (1939)
Members of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO) (plaintiff) planned to canvass Jersey City streets and parks to distribute recruitment materials. Mayor Frank Hague (defendant), viewing the CIO as Communist-affiliated, invoked a city ordinance banning gatherings of groups advocating unlawful obstruction of government, refused to permit the activity, and had police seize the group's materials. The CIO sued in federal district court, which found its rights had been abridged and held the ordinance unconstitutional; the Supreme Court granted certiorari.
Whether a city ordinance that completely prohibits a group from peacefully gathering and distributing materials on public streets and in public parks violates the group's constitutional rights.