America is experiencing two disturbing simultaneous trends: the rise of mob censorship to shut down speaking events on college campuses, and an attempt to justify it as merely the exercise of “more speech.”
FIRE warned the University of New Mexico in 2017 about imposing exorbitant event security fees on student groups, but six years later, UNM is reportedly at it again.
FIRE is seeking additional accountability from San Francisco State administrators after former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines faced substantial disruption last week.
Jenny Martinez’s 10-page tour-de-force on free speech in higher ed addresses the backlash and paves a path forward. Time will tell if Stanford Law students will take it.
The free-speech fallout at Stanford Law School continues after last Thursday’s headline-making, administrator-endorsed shoutdown of a federal judge by students who said his views were too “harmful” to be aired on campus.
When violence threatens protected speech, universities must act to remove lawbreakers instead of infringing expressive rights. Shutting down events rewards violent protestors and punishes speakers. But Penn State appears to have done exactly that on Monday.