The recent bill proposed by Rep. Prince Chestnut, D-Selma, is a refreshing piece of common-sense legislation that is as beneficial to the people as it is to the journalists it’s meant to protect.

Under Chestnut’s legislation, anyone who physically stands in the way of a journalist doing his or her constitutionally-protected duty would be guilty of a Class C felony, thereby ensuring that those who would use violence to keep the citizens of this state ignorant to corruption and mismanagement at the local, state or national level would think twice before using physical force against a member of the press.

Unlike many bills winding their way through the Alabama legislature, Chestnut’s proposal is not a partisan issue – protecting members of the press is little more than an assurance that the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution is protected and enshrined in state doctrine – and it should enjoy widespread support from members of both the Alabama House of Representatives and the Alabama Senate.

The state legislature would be wise to approve Chestnut’s proposal quickly and go on the record as a body that supports the rights of journalists and the communities they serve.

If it fails to do so, the state’s lawmakers will only give more credence to the assumption that there are misdeeds that they would prefer the people not know about, which is the only reason for any lawmaker to oppose this bill.

Chestnut’s legislation is a win for journalists and the people of this state but, more than that, it is a win for the most basic tenets of democracy that this nation was founded upon.