George Washington University: Police Investigate Posters Lampooning Conservative Student Group

September 13, 2017

Police at George Washington University investigated anonymous posters lampooning the views of a conservative student organization.

George Washington University: Jewish Student Suspended for Displaying Souvenir Indian Swastika

April 28, 2015

George Washington U. suspended a student, temporarily evicted him from university housing, and banned him from campus because he posted a small souvenir swastika from India on his residence hall’s bulletin board.

George Washington University: Secret Informer Line

May 4, 2002

Students and faculty at the George Washington University (GW) continue to live under a nightmarish "Compliance Line" policy that invites secret allegations and investigations. The hotline, established in February 2002 and administered off campus by Pinkerton Security, allows charges of any nature to be made anonymously. The administration may then launch investigations and create secret dossiers, without even notifying the target or providing him or her with the means for immediate rebuttal of quite possibly malicious charges. When media attention was first brought to bear on this scandalous policy, GW President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg issued a public statement in which […]

George Washington University: Violation of Due Process Rights in Sexual Misconduct Policy

April 1, 2001

George Washington University (GW) proposed a new sexual misconduct policy that lacked even basic provisions of procedural fairness. In a stunning and wholly appropriate blow to the university administration, GW’s faculty senate voted 15-0 to condemn a proposed sexual harassment code that virtually eliminated due process protections. The spirited discussion before the vote included references to FIRE and a resounding condemnation of Columbia University’s atrocious Sexual Misconduct Policy, which has now achieved the dubious distinction of demonstrating how serious charges should not be handled in a civilized community.

Demonstrations Policy

Speech Code Category: Protest and Demonstration Policies
Last updated: December 18, 2018

[T]he university maintains the right to define the time, place and manner in which demonstrations occur on its campuses and at its facilities. Individuals and organizations sponsoring demonstrations should contact Marvin Center and University Conferences, Mount Vernon Campus Events, or the Chief Academic Operating Officer/Virginia Campus, as appropriate, for information regarding compliance with university rules.

» Read More

GW Housing: Posters & Promotions

Speech Code Category: Posting and Distribution Policies
Last updated: December 18, 2018

Registered student organizations can hang posters in the residence halls by bringing a copy of the poster to the Housing office.

Posters should meet the following criteria: …

• NOT be offensive to any group or display any form of harrassment

» Read More

Residential Community Conduct Guidelines: Abuse

Speech Code Category: Policies on Tolerance, Respect, and Civility
Last updated: December 18, 2018

Abuse, threats, intimidation of others, or language used or action taken on a discriminatory basis, through the use of electronic, written, verbal or physical means, are unacceptable and are subject to administrative and/or disciplinary action.

» Read More

Code of Student Conduct- Disorderly Conduct

Speech Code Category: Policies on Tolerance, Respect, and Civility
Last updated: December 18, 2018

E. Disorderly Conduct –
i. Making excessive noise either inside or outside a building, including by shouting, pounding objects or surfaces, or playing music or other electronics at a loud volume;
ii. Verbally abusing university officials acting in performance of their duties;
iii. Acting in a manner that annoys, disturbs, threatens, endangers, or harasses others;
iv. Disrupting, obstructing, or interfering with the activities of others; or
v. Behaving in a lewd or indecent manner

» Read More

GW Haven: Sexual Harassment

Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 18, 2018

Sexual harassment is unwelcome verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature, sexual advances and/or requests for sexual favors. Gender-based harassment, on the other hand, is harassment based on gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity or gender expression even if the acts do not involve contact of a sexual nature.

Both sexual harassment and gender-based harassment violate GW policy when: … The conduct creates a hostile environment.  A hostile environment exists when the conduct is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that it unreasonably interferes with, limits, or deprives an individual from participating in or benefiting from the university’s educational, employment, and/or campus-residential experience when viewed both objectively and subjectively.

There are two main types of sexual harassment

…

2. Hostile Environment: Some examples may include:

• Repeated propositions or requests for a sexual relationship to an individual who has indicated this behavior is not wanted
• Unwelcome physical contact of a sexual nature
• Sexual gestures, noises, remarks, jokes. questions, or comments about a person’s sexuality that are so severe or pervasive that they would be perceived as creating a hostile work environment

» Read More

Acceptable Use Policy for Computer Systems and Services

Speech Code Category: Internet Usage Policies
Last updated: December 18, 2018

University computing systems, services and networks may not be used in an obscene, harassing or otherwise inappropriate manner.

» Read More

Guide to Student Rights and Responsibilities: Statement of Student Rights and Responsibilities

Speech Code Category: Advertised Commitments to Free Expression
Last updated: December 18, 2018

Academic institutions exist for the transmission of knowledge, the pursuit of truth, the development of students, and the general well-being of society. Free inquiry and free expression are indispensable to the attainment of these goals. As members of the academic community at the George Washington University, students should be encouraged to develop the capacity for critical judgment and to engage in a sustained and independent search for truth.

» Read More

Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment and Interpersonal Violence Policy

Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 18, 2018

Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment involve a broad range of conduct: Sexual Harassment is any unwelcome sexual advance, request for sexual favors, and/or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when one of the conditions outlined in (1), (2) or (3), below, is present.

Gender-Based Harassment includes harassment based on gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, which may include acts of aggression, intimidation or hostility, whether verbal or nonverbal, graphic, physical or otherwise, even if the acts do not involve contact of a sexual nature, when one of the conditions outlined in (1), (2) or (3), below, is present.

…

(3) Such conduct creates a hostile environment. A hostile environment exists when the conduct is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that it unreasonably interferes with, limits or deprives an individual from participating in or benefiting from the university’s educational, employment, and/or campus-residential experience when viewed through both a subjective and objective standard.

…

Sexual and Gender-Based Harassment may include, for example: … Unwelcome sexual advances, repeated propositions or requests for a sexual relationship to an individual who has previously indicated that such conduct is not wanted, unwelcome physical contact of a sexual nature, or sexual gestures, noises, remarks, jokes, questions or comments about a person’s sexuality that are so severe, persistent or pervasive that they would reasonably be perceived as creating a hostile or abusive work or educational environment.

» Read More

‘Disinvitations’ for College Speakers are on the Rise — Here’s a List of People Turned Away this Year

July 29, 2016

By Abby Jackson at Business Insider Student activism has long been ingrained in the culture of college campuses, but protests about perceived discrimination over the past year have been especially tense… Read more here.

Jefferson Muzzles go to 50 Colleges and Universities

April 20, 2016

By Eugene Volokh at The Washington Post The Thomas Jefferson Center (with which I’m involved as a member of the board of trustees) has just released its yearlyJefferson Muzzles, so I thought I’d pass along the center’s explanation of who the “winners” are this year. Note that the Ccnter supports academic freedom and free speech broadly, and not just those aspects that are legally protected by the First Amendment; so you’ll see many private institutions mentioned here, even though the First Amendment as such does not restrict private entities, as well as the public institutions to which the First Amendment applies… Read […]

Uninviting Rap

April 1, 2016

By Josh Logue at Inside Higher Ed A rare but not unheard of cousin of the commencement season speaker controversy is the spring concert performer controversy. Students have objected in the past to bands’ names, insufficient ethnic diversity and, perhaps most often, objectionable lyrics… Read more here.

Action Bronson Cut From University Concert: Another Free Speech Violation

April 1, 2016

By Max Kutner at Newsweek In what is being called another attack on free speech at American colleges by campus liberals, a student-run programming board at George Washington University (GW) has responded to student outcry by removing a controversial rapper, who some say is transphobic and promotes rape, from an upcoming concert lineup… Read more here.

The Phony Debate About Political Correctness

January 14, 2016

By Erica Hellerstein and Judd Legum at Think Progress In 1991, New York Magazine published an influential cover story, titled “Are You Politically Correct?” The headline was splashed across the glossy’s front page in bold red and white letters, followed by a list of supposed “politically correct” questions: … Read more here.

Speech Zones and Puppy Rooms Make First Amendment Lawyers Laugh and Cringe on Bill of Rights Day

December 18, 2015

By Greg Piper at The College Fix Students learn free speech is worthless from K-12 administrators WASHINGTON – “The academic progressives have really stepped down from free speech as a value that can never be compromised in the debate with equality.” So said Catherine Ross, a constitutional law professor at George Washington University, at an American Bar Association panel discussion Tuesday in celebration of Bill of Rights Day. Ross and other First Amendment practitioners said they are worried about the direction that high schools and colleges are going with regard to student speech, as well as a new Supreme Court […]

FIRE Report: 49% of Colleges ‘Substantially Restrict’ Free Speech

December 11, 2015

By Anthony Hennen at Red Alert Politics Though media coverage on campus and free speech have shown a worrying disregard for the First Amendment, campus restrictions on speech have reached a low point. A new report from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education found that “less than half of America’s colleges maintain policies that severely restrict students’ right to free speech,” according to a press release. The report noted that the decline in campus speech codes continued for its eight consecutive year, but it isn’t necessarily a secure or permanent victory for free speech. 49 percent isn’t exactly a […]

Debate: Are ‘Smart Pills’ for Students like Steroids in Sports?

November 9, 2015

By Jackson Richman at Red Alert Politics  Drugs like Adderall and Ritalin have become increasingly popular among college students to help them stay focused for long periods of time. Is it smart for students to take drugs that will enable them to better perform in the classroom? Or is it cheating? Last week the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) hosted a debate at George Washington University about whether or not students should be permitted to take “smart pills,” and most agreed that it should be allowed. The debate, titled “College Students Should Be Allowed to Take Smart Drugs,” consisted of University of […]

Intelligence Squared / FIRE debate: College Students Should be Allowed to Take Smart Drugs

November 1, 2015

By Nicholas Quinn Rosenkranz at The Washington Post Intelligence Squared US and the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) are embarking on a joint venture (that I am proud to have brokered), to present a series of high-profile debates on college campuses. Our first debate will be tomorrow at George Washington University. Arguing for the motion will be Dr. Anjan Chatterjee, professor, University of Pennsylvania and chair of neurology, Pennsylvania Hospital; and our own Nita Farahany, Volokh conspirator and professor of law and philosophy, Duke University. Arguing against the motion will be Eric Racine, director, Neuroethics Research Unit, Institut de Recherches […]

George Washington U Debate: Allow Students to Take ‘Smart Drugs?’

October 26, 2015

By Mary Ann Barton at Georgetown Patch If you could take a pill that would help you study and get better grades, would you? The stress of competing for top grades has led to a rise in students’ off-label use of so-called “smart drugs” like Adderall, Ritalin, and modafinil, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. But is this a negative development? Is the use of smart drugs cheating? Should their use as cognitive enhancers be approved by the FDA, the medical community, and society at large? On Monday, Nov. 2, four renowned doctors and bioethicists will debate […]

Campus Sexual Assault Policies, at U and Elsewhere, Drawing Scrutiny

October 20, 2015

By Emma Nelson at Star Tribune  Weeks into her freshman year at the University of Minnesota, Courtney Blake was sexually assaulted in her dorm room. She reported it to campus officials, rather than police. Though the young man argued the sex was consensual, he was found to have violated the student conduct code and put on disciplinary probation, given mandatory counseling and assigned to write a paper, according to an investigation document. Blake was moved to another dorm. Less than a year later, Blake was assaulted at an off-campus party by a different student. This time, she turned to the […]

The Israel Debate on Campus Leaves Both Sides Feeling Victimized

October 11, 2015

By Nathan Guttman at The Forward  In the heated debate over Israel raging on college campuses, both sides are claiming the mantle of victimhood. Two recent reports published by pro-Palestinian groups that support the use of boycott, divestment and sanctions measures against Israel portray a troubling picture of students being intimidated by pro-Israel activists and of an organized effort to stifle debate on Middle East politics. These claims, supported by testimonies from students and faculty, and cases represented by Palestine Legal, a law center representing pro-Palestinian students, are, in many cases, a mirror image of those raised in recent years […]

Confederate Symbols, Swastikas and Student Sensibilities

July 31, 2015

By Joseph Berger at The New York Times Symbols — their meaning, history and power to hurt — have been a volatile topic across the country this summer, and college campuses have not escaped the storm. The Confederate flag became a target of outrage after the massacre of nine African-Americans at a historic church in Charleston, S.C., and the emergence of photos of the accused gunman waving the flag. Amid calls to remove the symbol from the South Carolina Statehouse grounds, statues of Civil War figures at campuses in Chapel Hill, N.C., and Austin, Tex., were spray-painted with the message […]

Display of Swastika Causes a Row

May 28, 2015

By Narayan Lakshman at The Hindu When a ‘Jewish student’ placed a Hindu swastika obtained as a souvenir on a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board on March 16, it led to a suspension order and charges, including those relating to disorderly conduct and discrimination, with the possibility of an investigation into ‘hate crimes’. Following a revocation of the suspension order, the student was reinstated this week to full status at the George Washington University (GWU) after an outcry by The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), and the Hindu American Foundation (HAF). According to FIRE […]

GWU Drops Its Ignorant Attack on Student who Posted Hindu Symbol

May 28, 2015

By Greg Piper at The College Fix All it took was international condemnation and threats of legal action! George Washington University – the first college in the nation to crack $50,000 in “total cost of attendance” for students – won’t expel a student after all who posted a symbol resembling a Nazi swastika on his house’s bulletin board, which turned out to be a Hindu religious symbol, the Times of India reports. The school made a big stink about the symbol when it was first discovered – President Steven Knapp even opened a hate-crime investigation – yet has made nary a […]

George Washington University Rescinds Suspension Of Jewish Student Who Displayed The Hindu Swastika Symbol

May 28, 2015

By Raif Karerat at The American Bazaar WASHINGTON, DC: Following international outcry and the threat of litigation, George Washington University has opted to rescind the suspension it doled out to a student who posted a Hindu swastika on his residence hall’s bulletin board. The Hindu swastika — which is a religious symbol and carries none of the hateful connotations of its Nazi-appropriated counterpart — was displayed on a bulletin board in GWU’s International House residence hall and subsequently mistaken for the Nazis’ World War II-era emblem on March 16. The student, who is a member of the predominantly Jewish fraternity […]

Subjecting Free Speech to the Assassin’s Veto

May 5, 2015

By Sonny Bunch at The Washington Post Free speech is under assault around the globe. Consider, for instance, the vow from British Labour leader Ed Miliband to “outlaw” language deemed offensive to Muslims. “We are going to make [Islamophobia] an aggravated crime,” Miliband said. “We will challenge prejudice before it grows, whether in schools, universities or on social media.” Meanwhile, others in the United Kingdom are pushing for anti-Semites on social media to be treated like sex offenders: banned from services such as Twitter and Facebook for the good of all. Vladimir Putin’s Russia and Ed Miliband’s Britain share a disdain […]

GWU Urged to Revoke Jewish Student’s Suspension

April 30, 2015

By PTI at India Tribune A prominent student rights’ group, along with the student’s attorneys and the Hindu American Foundation, urged the George Washington University to revoke suspension of the Jewish student for placing a souvenir Hindu swastika obtained on a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board. “GWU may not ignore thousands of years of history and effectively forbid all uses of the swastika because it was used by Nazi Germany,” said Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), which defends and sustains individual rights at America’s colleges and universities. “It’s ironic that the charges against the […]

GWU Suspends Jewish Student for Hindu Swastika Souvenir, Calls it a ‘Hate Crime’

April 29, 2015

By Ashley Dobson at Red Alert Politics Learning outside of class and free expression is apparently frowned upon at George Washington University. GWU has suspended  a Jewish student for placing a souvenir Hindu swastika obtained on a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Here’s the back story from FIRE: “On March 16, the student placed a small, bronze, Indian swastika on a bulletin board at GWU’s International House residence hall. He intended to educate his friends and co-residents about the symbol’s origins, which he learned about during a spring break […]

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education on the GWU Swastika Suspension

April 29, 2015

By Eugene Volokh at The Washington Post From FIRE; see the post itself for further links: The George Washington University (GWU) has ignored both context and its own promises of free expression by suspending a Jewish student for placing a souvenir Hindu swastika obtained on a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), along with the student’s attorneys and the Hindu American Foundation, are calling on GWU to revoke the suspension. On March 16, the student placed a small, bronze, Indian swastika on a bulletin board at GWU’s International House […]

Swastikas and Free Speech

April 29, 2015

By Richard Vedder at Forbes Magazine Roughly 25 years ago, the chair of the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), Frederic Andre, gave me a short tour of his building right off the Mall in Washington, D.C. I was startled to see that the main wall design in the main lobby consisted of thousands of swastikas. I believe the building predated the Nazi era, and the swastika had not taken on the sinister meaning it later assumed. The ICC was even more antiquated than the building, and within a few years it was abolished, a move Mr. Andre wholeheartedly supported. While the […]

GWU Student Suspended, Investigated for Anti-Jewish Hate Crime. Wait, What?: Is School Not the Right Place to Learn About the Swastika’s Origins?

April 28, 2015

By Robby Soave at Reason Online In March, George Washington University suspended a Jewish student and charged him with breaking the law, disorderly conduct, and discrimination. Additionally, administrators forwarded his case to D.C. police as a possible “hate crime” investigation, according to theFoundation for Individual Rights in Education. What did this Jewish student do to get himself kicked out of classes and trigger an anti-Jewish hate crime kerfuffle? He tried to start a conversation about the swastika, which actually predates German Nazism and is a symbol of good luck in other cultures. He placed an Indian swastika on a campus […]

George Washington University’s Swastika Problem

April 26, 2015

By Kevin D. Williamson at National Review When tyranny arrives on these shores, it isn’t going to start off looking like something out of George Orwell — it’s going to look a lot like college, which is why the sort of people who twice made Barack Obama president of these United States will welcome it. George Washington University (“the Harvard of safety schools,” as alumnus Dan Foster calls it) has a swastika problem. This goes back a ways. In 2007, a Jewish student, Sarah Marshak, reported that her dorm-room door had been defaced with swastikas, and she complained that the […]

Liberals Are Stifling Intellectual Diversity, Campus Audience Decides After Hearing Both Sides of the Argument

February 26, 2015

By Napp Nazworth at Christian Post WASHINGTON — Before the Intelligence Squared debate held at George Washington University, only one in three audience members said they agreed that liberals are stifling intellectual diversity at colleges and universities, but after hearing both sides of the debate, almost three-fifths of the audience was convinced that liberals are stifling intellectual diversity. The debate, moderated by John Donvan, an author and correspondent for ABC News, will be aired on National Public Radio stations and is available online. For the motion, “liberals are stifling intellectual diversity on campus,” was Greg Lukianoff, president of Foundation for Individual […]

Encouragingly, Both Sides in Debate on Campus Speech End Up Defending Campus Speech

February 25, 2015

By Stephanie Slade at Reason.com Anyone feeling disheartened by the many ways our FirstAmendment freedoms are under attack may find solace in the outcome of an event last night hosted by Intelligence Squared at George Washington University. Two teams of two debated whether liberals are stifling intellectual diversity on college campuses—and the side arguing for the proposition won in a landslide. Interestingly, three of the four participants and both debaters arguing the affirmative indentify as liberals. The winning side was represented by Greg Lukianoff, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), and Kirsten Powers, one of Fox News’ sacrificial left-of-center […]

GWU punishes victims in anti-Muslim flier flap, group says

October 11, 2007

Administrators at a university in Washington, D.C., are “on a rampage” against a conservative student group on its campus over fake anti-Muslim posters even though seven other students have said they were responsible for the fliers, a national organization charged on Wednesday. “It’s obvious to anyone with a moment’s reflection that such fliers were created to fake an incident of hate where none exists, rather than contribute to a robust discussion regarding the threat of radical Islam,” said the conservative Young America’s Foundation (YAF) in a statement on the group’s Web site. The news release stated that the YAF chapter […]

Schools discipline students over Internet content

February 22, 2006

Four Syracuse University students punished for trashing their teacher on Facebook.com joined the growing number of students nationally whose school has held them accountable for what they put on the Internet. “Criticism can be considered a matter of free speech. In this particular situation it was the content, and the content was considered as being reviewable as a possible violation of the university code of student conduct,” said Kevin Morrow, speaking for SU. “The language and the phrasing of these Facebook postings were extreme.” Some students use Facebook.com as their personal diary. They post pictures and information such as their […]

George Washington U. Professors Blast Hot Line for Anonymous Complaints

May 24, 2002

George Washington U. May Cut Faculty Complaint Line

May 2, 2002

GW Cuts Anonymous-Complaint Line

April 29, 2002

GW May Cut Complaint Line

April 25, 2002

Column: Administrators Tip Line Is Bad Policy for GW

April 25, 2002

Faculty React to Complaint Line

April 25, 2002

GWU Hot Line Angers Faculty

April 19, 2002

More Than One Kind of Sexual Harassment

June 15, 2001

Contested Campus Sex Code

June 14, 2001

How useful are campus speech codes?

June 1, 2001

George Washington Professors Reject Harassment Policy

May 18, 2001

Grave Injustices

May 2, 2001

Professors Reject Harassment Policy

April 30, 2001

GWU Faculty Rejects Conduct Code; Senate Seeks Sexual Harassment Policy that Protects Teachers’ Rights

April 28, 2001

Proposed Harassment Policy Divides GW

April 27, 2001

George Washington University police investigating posters lampooning conservative group — again

September 13, 2017

Police at George Washington University are reportedly scrutinizing security camera footage to identify the culprits behind posters clearly satirizing a conservative student organization — the second time the university’s authorities have investigated the same poster in ten years. Yesterday, we wrote to the university calling on them to abandon the investigation. The GW Hatchet reports: Islamophobic fliers designed to look like they were posted by GW’s Young America’s Foundation were discovered on campus Friday, according to the student group. The posters made it appear as if YAF was hosting an “Islamo-Fascism Awareness Week” with the heading “Hate Muslims? So do […]

Students Fly Flags at GWU in Support of Student Told to Remove Palestinian Flag

December 14, 2015

About 20 students, some draped in flags from various nations, gathered at George Washington University’s (GWU’s) Kogan Plaza on Friday to support Ramie Abounaja, the GWU student forced to remove a Palestinian flag from his dorm room window in October. “We are showing our support for Ramie and showing our support for any student who feels like they don’t have the right to speak freely on campus,” said Vanessa Alarcon, one of the organizers of the Fly Your Flag event. Last week, GWU President Peter Knapp called Abounaja to personally apologize for the incident in which a campus police officer […]

GWU President Apologizes to Student Threatened for Hanging Palestinian Flag; Student Group Will Hold Protest

December 11, 2015

The president of George Washington University (GWU) has issued a personal apology to Ramie Abounaja, the GWU student who was forced to remove a Palestinian flag from his dormitory room window by university police and then threatened with disciplinary action by the university for displaying it. GWU President Peter Knapp issued the statement yesterday. In it, he explained that the October 26 incident was sparked by someone reporting the flag to the GWU police department. An officer told the student to remove the flag, as hanging objects outside dormitory windows is against university policy. “That should have been the end […]

George Washington University Forces Student to Remove Palestinian Flag from Window

December 9, 2015

Universities that promise free expression cannot enforce policies regarding student speech in a way that discriminates against certain viewpoints. Unfortunately, universities often do exactly that. The newest example of this disrespect for student speech rights comes from George Washington University (GWU), where student Ramie Abounaja was forced to remove a Palestinian flag from outside his window because other students complained. On October 26, a GWU police officer came to Abounaja’s dorm room to demand that Abounaja remove the Palestinian flag, claiming that the police department received complaints about the flag’s presence. Abounaja reports that the officer did not leave until […]

Victory: The George Washington University Retreats from Battle with Context

May 29, 2015

A Jewish student charged with five disciplinary violations and placed on interim suspension by The George Washington University (GWU) for attempting to start a dialogue about the historical pre-Nazi use of the swastika has been allowed to return to campus and his studies. The reversal comes in the wake of criticism from FIRE, the Hindu American Foundation, and the student’s attorneys. As FIRE detailed in our April 28 press release, the student had recently traveled to India, where he learned about the ancient history of the swastika as a symbol of good fortune and purchased a small bronze replica of […]

George Washington’s Response to Swastika Earns Media Scrutiny

April 30, 2015

Earlier this week, FIRE reported on The George Washington University’s (GWU’s) suspension of a Jewish student who displayed a Hindu swastika he brought back with him from a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board. Charging the student with five conduct code violations, the university ignored the swastika’s long tradition as a symbol of good luck. In so doing, GWU ignored its own promises of free expression, as well as FIRE’s March 27 letter arguing that it must rescind its punishment of the student. Many commentators have since written publicly to explain that the mere display of a […]

The George Washington University Tramples Free Speech, Ignores Context in Suspending Student for Indian Swastika Posting

April 28, 2015

WASHINGTON, April 28, 2015—The George Washington University (GWU) has ignored both context and its own promises of free expression by suspending a Jewish student for placing a souvenir Hindu swastika obtained on a trip to India on his residence hall’s bulletin board. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), along with the student’s attorneys and the Hindu American Foundation, are calling on GWU to revoke the suspension. On March 16, the student placed a small, bronze, Indian swastika on a bulletin board at GWU’s International House residence hall. He intended to educate his friends and co-residents about the symbol’s […]

Catch FIRE President Greg Lukianoff in D.C., Chapel Hill, and Berkeley Next Week

September 19, 2014

FIRE President Greg Lukianoff will be on the move next week as he travels from campus to campus to promote free speech and First Amendment rights at America’s colleges and universities. On Monday, Greg will be participating in the Fourth Annual President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge National Gathering on the campus of George Washington University (GWU) in Washington, D.C. He will take part in a panel that will focus on the issue of religious liberties on campus and will be joined by Charles Haynes, the Director of the Newseum’s Religious Freedom Center. The panel will be moderated by […]

Letter to Editor on ‘National Failure of Student Discipline Codes’

April 1, 2013

Illustration of Justice Scales – Shutterstock In a powerfully written letter to the editor of The GW Hatchet, a student newspaper at George Washington University, attorney Shanlon Wu calls into question whether students can receive a fair and accurate result from university disciplinary processes. Wu, a litigator with the Washington, D.C., firm Wu, Grohovsky & Whipple, draws upon personal experience representing university students to make a number of salient points. Among them:  Every day, students across the country face discipline code violations that can affect the rest of their lives yet the systems under which they are investigated, charged, tried […]

Student Newspapers at George Washington, Rutgers Take Note of Their Institutions’ Speech Code Ratings

September 7, 2010

The student newspapers at George Washington University (GW) and Rutgers University have reported on FIRE’s Spotlight ratings for the speech codes at their respective institutions. A September 2 article in The GW Hatchet, an independent student newspaper at GW, discusses the university’s yellow-light rating in Spotlight. As the article points out, there are three policies that earn GW this rating: a “Disorderly Conduct” policy, a policy on “Demonstrations,” and a policy on “Poster/Flyer Distribution.” With regard to the Disorderly Conduct policy, which in relevant part prohibits “acting in a manner that annoys, disturbs, threatens or harasses others,” the article notes: […]

Common Sense Saves GW Production of ‘Quills’

February 10, 2009

Yesterday’s issue of the GW Hatchet, an independent student newspaper at George Washington University, reports a troubling controversy—albeit one that seemingly has come to a proper conclusion. The controversy arose when a new student theater group, called The Company, sought to mount a production of Doug Wright’s play Quills at GW. As Matthew Rist summarizes in the Hatchet: “‘Quills’ is an award-winning production set in 18th-century France that tells a fictional story of the last days of aristocrat Marquis de Sade, who was notorious for his pornographic novels and sadomasochism.” In one scene, Quills contains full-frontal nudity, a matter student […]

After ‘DeJohn,’ Time to Revisit Sexual Harassment Policies Nationwide

September 23, 2008

George Washington University (GW) law professor John Banzhaf points out that GW’s sexual harassment policy is: very similar to one just found unconstitutional in a very recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit. The court struck down a very similar policy at Temple University even before it was applied in a specific situation. This follows several similar court decisions which suggest that rules limiting sexually harassing speech in workplaces cannot be applied to student speech in public universities. Although GW is a private university, Banzhaf makes very good points about university sexual harassment policies in […]

George Washington University Badgers Innocent YAF Students

October 12, 2007

Randy Hall at the Cybercast News Service has it right: “GWU Punishes Victims.” The “victims” to whom the title alludes are the members of the George Washington University student chapter of Young America’s Foundation (YAF), which was parodied in flyers posted around campus by non-YAF students who have admitted posting the flyers. The clearly satirical flyers read, “HATE MUSLIMS? SO DO WE” and implied that YAF had authorized the flyers (although reading the whole flyer makes it obvious that YAF was not the author). But now a GWU official is badgering YAF, the group says, to draft a statement which […]

Police State U

October 18, 2005

Check out “Keeping a Close Watch on Students” on Inside Higher Ed. It tells only the latest story of universities’ encroachment into students’ lives, this time at the University of Rhode Island: About 150 students rallied Monday in protest of university policy changes that will allow students who live off-campus—as a majority do—to be referred to the university judicial system for things that happen outside campus borders. This is not new. I have received reports of universities with ever more invasive polices for years and, as the article notes, “Rhode Island officials noted that most of the university’s peer institutions […]

Rudeness Police

September 21, 2004

Beware of GW’s new rudeness police; they may be investigating you. Suppose you’ve left GW for the day and are working at an office in a private building off campus. Suddenly someone you don’t know, and who has no connection to GW, barges in. You tell him to leave, and he does. You go back to work, and figure everything is over. But you’re wrong. Months later you learn this person has filed a complaint against you with the University. As a result, you are requested by a high-level GW administrator to submit to a 30-minute interrogation to determine whether, […]

FIRE Letter to George Washington University

April 30, 2001

Dear Professors and Faculty Senators, The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education unites civil rights and civil liberties leaders, scholars, public intellectuals, and journalists across the political and ideological spectrum on behalf of liberty, academic freedom, legal equality, free speech, freedom of religion, and, in this case, due process and fundamental fairness on America’s college campuses. Our web page, www.thefire.org, will give you a fuller sense of our identity and activities. The faculty members of an institution of higher learning have a solemn obligation to pass along to the next generation a university at least as free, humane, and decent […]

Faculty Senate Meeting Minutes, April 13, 2001

April 13, 2001

GW Faculty Senate Minutes   Attached Files GW Faculty Senate Minutes, April 13, 2005, PDF, 2.2 MB , GW Faculty Senate Minutes