I found this article today: Unconstitutional Ban on Distributing Literature.
A student passed out literature after class and was later told that she was in violation of school policies, which do not allow for any materials to be distributed in the classrooms... or on much of the campus for that matter.
She had waited until after class to distribute her literature. I don't see anything that indicates that she was being obnoxious in the way she approached the other students. But someone got offended by the topic and complained.
The fact is, during my undergrad days, a lot of what was handed out on campus offended me. And I'm sure that had I given out pamphlets stating my views, it wouldn't have been appreciated by some of my fellow students. Does that mean that it would have been wrong for either of us to distribute that material? No, of course not. Does it mean that I had to accept, read, or keep the material? No.
This school has taken a very unconstitutional approach, probably in an attempt to avoid conflict. I'm so thankful that I went to a school that supported my freedom of speech, instead of trying to suppress it!
I looked at some of the related links and found it humorous in a horrifying way that the school's initial response was to attempt to ban distribution of all literature on campus. Granted, that could cut down on a lot of confusion and reduce the annoyance of having papers thrust at you while trying to walk across campus, but it's not worth it at the expense of the students' rights.
How ironic that in college, students frequently have to submit assignments in which they express their own personal opinions - and can do so freely without fear of intimidation under academic freedom. But to express those same ideas outside of class by distributing pamphlets is suddenly a violation of college policy!
ReplyDeleteI checked out the college's mission statement. Two points in particular struck me:
--Challenge individuals to broaden their concepts of self, expand their views of the world, and recognize their roles in a global society by fostering values that respect and celebrate diversity while promoting social responsibility, critical thinking, communication, and innovation.
--Promote the development and implementation of new ideas, provide leadership for collaborative activities, and serve as a resource center for community-based and regional partnerships.
http://www.sinclair.edu/about/mission/index.cfm
Nice. What a great teachable moment that could have been had they not turned it into a free speech debate. Students could have been challenged to verify the sources the student used for her flyer and taught about the media and biased sources.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if the college sends departmental representatives out with literature during orientation? Do they follow their own policies, or is this just an individual versus a group thing? What about sororities and fraternities and other groups on campus?
ReplyDeleteThe article said something about officially recognized groups being allowed. So it may just be individuals who have no rights.
ReplyDelete