In Caldwell v. Texas, the U.S Supreme Court ruled that a state law which prohibited African Americans from holding public religious meetings without the presence of licensed white ministers was unconstitutional. The case began when Rev. R.M. Caldwell, an African American minister in Texas, was convicted and fined for violating this law by conducting a religious service without any white supervision present. He appealed his conviction to the Supreme Court on grounds that it violated his Fourteenth Amendment rights to equal protection under the law and freedom of religion as protected by First Amendment principles incorporated into state laws through due process clause of Fourteenth amendment. The court agreed with Caldwell's argument stating that while states have power to regulate behavior for maintaining peace and good order within their jurisdiction, they cannot infringe upon fundamental rights such as freedom of speech or worship unless there is clear danger posed by exercise of these rights which justifies restriction imposed by them; hence declared said Texan statute unconstitutional because it discriminated against black citizens based solely on their race thereby denying them equal protection under laws guaranteed by 14th amendment.

The dissenting opinion in the Caldwell v. Texas case argued that the state law under which Caldwell was convicted did not violate his constitutional rights to freedom of speech and assembly, as claimed by the majority. The dissenting justices believed that states have a right to regulate certain activities within their borders for public safety reasons, even if those regulations might limit some forms of expression or assembly. They contended that this particular law was designed to prevent potential violence and disorder associated with large gatherings rather than suppress free speech or peaceful assembly per se. Therefore, they disagreed with the majority's view that it infringed upon First Amendment rights protected by Fourteenth Amendment against state infringement.