A series of vaguely-worded laws are threatening to limit freedom of assembly and protest.

After the Black Lives Matter protests that occurred last summer in the wake of Officer Derek Chauvin’s murder of George Floyd, certain states are now beginning to pass laws that target the kinds of marches and protests seen in the summer. So far, 29 states have moved to introduce such laws.

“Not only do these bills seek to impose monetary and criminal penalties,” says Vera Eidelman, staff attorney at ACLU, “but there are also provisions in a number of states that would bar people from public employment, public benefits, and public office.” Specifically, the bills target new felonies such as “aggravated rioting” and destruction of “memorials,” the former of which can result in 15 years in prison, 25 if the protest becomes violent.

Among the other new felonies introduced in the bills is “mob intimidation.” This law’s vague definition has been criticized by Florida senate minority leader Gary Farmer: “This language is just so broadly worded, so undefined and so potentially harmful to the right of free speech that you could have peaceful protesters prosecuted while someone near them, but maybe not necessarily associated with them, breaks the law.” This kind of vagueness is highly dangerous, considering the lives at stake.

Even more unsettling is the manner in which these laws have been interpreted to specifically target Black Lives Matter protests. Such protests and marches usually take place in the streets, so the fact that many of the bills reduce the punishment for running over protestors and increase the repercussion for blocking traffic is rather suspect. These laws have been widely lambasted for the damage they could do to free speech. As protests for social justice continue into the future, the same way they have throughout American history, many more conflicts such as this are bound to arise, raising questions about the relationship between justice and law.