Free Speech
Freedom of speech is a fundamental American freedom, and nowhere should it be more valued and protected than at America's colleges and universities. The "marketplace of ideas" upon which a university depends for its intellectual vitality cannot flourish when students or faculty members must fear punishment for expressing views that might be unpopular with the public at large or disfavored by university administrators. Yet this freedom is under continuous assault at many of America's campuses. Speech codes dictating what may or may not be said, "free speech zones" confining free speech to certain areas of campus, and administrative attempts to punish or repress speech on a case-by-case basis are common today in academia. FIRE's public cases dealing with freedom of speech, listed below, demonstrate our commitment to restoring and preserving this basic freedom on our nation's campuses. The future of a generation of students—and of liberal education itself—depends on our success.
- Download and order FIRE's Guide to Free Speech on Campus.
- Read the landmark letter from the United States Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, July 28, 2003.
- Read Harvey Silverglate's "Memorandum to Free Speech Advocates, University of Wisconsin."
- Bellevue Community College: Professor Punished for "Racially Insensitive" Exam Question
- Binghamton University: Student Suspended for Posters Criticizing Department of Social Work and Government Agency
- Brandeis University: Professor Found Guilty of Harassment for Protected Speech
- Bucknell University: University Slams Door on Student Satires of Obama Stimulus Plan and Affirmative Action
- Bucks County Community College: Ideological Loyalty Oath for Professors
- Catholic University of America: Rejection of Campus NAACP Chapter
- Central Michigan University: Abridgement of Freedom to Display Patriotic Symbols
- College of William and Mary: Suppression of Affirmative Action Bake Sale
- Colorado College: Students Found Guilty for Satirical Flyer
- Colorado State University: Student Editor on Trial for Protected Speech
- DePaul University: Censorship of Student Group Protesting Ward Churchill
- Hamline University: Student Suspended after Advocating Concealed Carry on Campus
- Harvard University: Proposed Speech Codes
- Harvard University: Threat to Discipline Student Newspaper Staff for Publishing Satirical Cartoon
- Hinds Community College: Student Barred from Class
- Indiana University - Purdue University Indianapolis: Student Employee Found Guilty of 'Racial Harassment' for Reading a Book
- Johns Hopkins University: Student Punished for Party Invitation
- Lake Superior State University: Veteran Professor Ordered to Remove Posted Materials from Office Door
- Michigan State University: Student Government Official Threatened with Suspension for E-mailing Faculty about University Scheduling Concerns
- Mohammed Cartoon Controversy: FIRE Response to Intimidation and Newspaper Disputes
- Pennsylvania State University: Charges of ‘Discrimination’ Due to Religious Language in Club Constitution
- Pennsylvania State University: Disciplining of Professor for Pro-War Remarks
- Rutgers University: Refusal to Allow Christian Clubs to Require Christian Leadership
- Saint Cloud State University: Thought Reform and Suppression of Free Speech
- Saint Xavier University: Reprimand of Professor for Anti-Military Comments
- San Francisco State University: Speech Codes Litigation
- San Francisco State University: Students Investigated for Stepping on Flags
- Shippensburg University: Speech Code Litigation
- Southern Illinois University at Carbondale: Free Speech Crisis Over Unconstitutional Policies
- Tarrant County College Bans Symbolic 'Empty Holster' Protest
- Temple University: Speech Code Litigation
- Temple University: Unconstitutional Security Fee for Geert Wilders Presentation
- Texas Tech University: Speech Code Litigation
- Tufts University: Conservative Student Journal Investigated for Harassment
- Tufts University: Refusal to Allow Evangelical Christian Club to Reject Homosexual Leadership
- Tufts University: Use of Sexual Harassment Allegations to Suppress Protected Speech
- University of Alaska: Investigation of Protected Speech
- University of California at Berkeley: Ban on Word "California" in Organization Names
- University of California at San Diego: First Amendment Violations at UCSD
- University of California at Santa Barbara: Attempt to Stop Website from Using Letters ‘UCSB’
- University of Chicago: Censorship of Student's Online Speech by University Police
- University of Colorado at Boulder: Investigation of Professor for Controversial Essay
- University of Georgia: Restriction on Fraternities’ Free Speech Rights
- University of Idaho: Student Charged With Discrimination and Harassment for 'Offensive' Speech
- University of Miami: Refusal to Approve Conservative Student Group
- University of New Hampshire: Eviction of Student for Posting Flier
- University of New Mexico: Censorship of Professor After Joking About Pentagon Attack
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill: Refusal to Allow Christian Clubs to Require Christian Leadership
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro: Punishment of Free Speech Protestors
- University of North Carolina at Greensboro: Review of Speech Codes
- University of South Carolina: Mandated Orthodoxy in the Classroom
- University of South Florida: The ‘Heckler’s Veto’
- Valdosta State University: Student Expelled for Peacefully Protesting Parking Garages
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech): Ban on Certain Viewpoints and Requirement of Prior Approval for Speech
- Virginia: Attorney General Investigates Professor's Research
- Washington State University: Administrative Support for Heckler's Veto of Student Play
- Washington University: Mandatory University Viewpoint