Modesto Junior College

Location: Modesto, California
Website: http://www.mjc.edu/
Type: Public
Federal Circuit: 9th Circuit

Speech Code Rating

Modesto Junior College is not currently rated in our system. To request speech code information about this school, please submit a speech code request form.

At present, FIRE does not maintain information on this school's policies.

  • Jardine: Bill Would Make Voting Easier, but Won’t Cure Apathy

    March 14, 2016

    By Jeff Jardine at The Modesto Bee When California Secretary of State Alex Padilla rolled through Modesto last week, he came on a mission. Read more here.

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  • Going Through FIRE to Protect Our Rights: College Students Feel Heat on Campus Over Free-Speech Issues

    April 20, 2015

    By Editorial Staff at The Augusta Chronicle Young people are the future. It stands to reason, then, that they must understand their freedoms if freedoms are to endure into the future. Enter FIRE. The nonprofit Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (www.thefire.org) helps protect students’ rights, particularly their First Amendment right to free speech. Unless you’ve followed FIRE, you’d be amazed at how much those basic rights are under assault today on American college campuses – which, in the 1960s, actually came to symbolize free speech. Like many college administrations, officials at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, not only set […]

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  • DWT Asked To Serve As Legal Counsel for Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project

    April 17, 2015

    By Lisa Zycherman at JD Supra Constitution Day 2013 was a pretty bad day for the Constitution on our public university campuses. That was the day that Robert Van Tuinen of Modesto Junior College in California was prevented from passing out copies of the Constitution outside of his school’s tiny “free speech zone.” On that same day, near Los Angeles, Citrus College student Vinny Sinapi-Riddle was threatened with removal from campus for the “offense” of collecting signatures for a petition against National Security Agency (“NSA”) domestic surveillance outside his college’s tiny free speech area. The absurdity of these constitutional violations […]

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  • Top 10 Worst Offenders of Free Speech on College Campuses

    March 6, 2015

    By Napp Nazworth at The Christian Post The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education released its list of the top 10 worst offenders of free speech on college campuses in 2014. The top 10, in alphabetical order, are: Brandeis University, California State University-Fullerton, Chicago State University, Georgetown University, Kansas Board of Regents, Marquette University, Modesto Junior College, U.S. Department’s of Education and Justice, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and University of Iowa. FIRE, founded in 1999, advocates for individual rights at American colleges and universities. It was founded by University of Pennsylvania professor Alan Charles Kors and civil liberties attorney […]

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  • Free Speech on Campus: The 10 Worst Offenders of 2014

    March 2, 2015

    By Greg Lukianoff at The Huffington Post College is the place where students should be encouraged to, as Yale promises, “think the unthinkable, discuss the unmentionable, and challenge the unchallengeable.” Unfortunately, schools all across the country not only fall short on promises of free expression and academic freedom but openly suppress constitutionally protected speech on campus by using tools such as speech codes to shut down forms of expression that might be uncomfortable, disagreeable, or even offensive to some members of the campus community. To give a clearer picture of campus censorship, we at the Foundation for Individual Rights in […]

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  • Jeff Jardine: The survey says? Modesto safer than Capitola, Nevada City

    March 2, 2015

    By Jeff Jardine at The Modesto Bee From the emails, voice mails and other trusted sources: THE SURVEY SAYS – Modesto residents are generally thrilled when some publication completes one of those horrible-places-to-live lists and the city escapes mention. Telegraph Today, an online site that produces lots of lists on lots of topics, recently named California’s 10 most dangerous cities, based upon violent-crime rates generated by law enforcement agencies. Joyfully, Modesto isn’t on it. The top 10, in descending order, are: Oakland, Oroville, Desert Hot Springs, Compton, Stockton, Irwindale, Emeryville, Nevada City, Arvin and Capitola. Shouldn’t one of them have […]

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  • Friday Interview: Fighting College Free-Speech Restrictions

    November 21, 2014

    By CJ Staff at Carolina Journal RALEIGH — Stroll through a college campus, and you expect to hear debate about a range of good, bad, and even crazy ideas. But too many colleges place limits on debate or restrict the free exchange of ideas to small, out-of-the-way sections of campus. Robert Shibley, senior vice president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, recently discussed higher education free-speech restrictions with Mitch Kokai for Carolina Journal Radio. (Click here to find a station near you or to learn about the weekly CJ Radio podcast.) Kokai: You recently wrote a column for […]

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  • Public University Threatens Students Passing Out U.S. Constitution Outside ‘Free Speech Zone’

    October 15, 2014

    By Ashley Dobson at Red Alert Politics Southern Oregon University officials threatened a group of four students with disciplinary action and a call to the police after the group was seen passing out U.S. Constitutions outside of a designated “free speech zone.” The public university currently has a “zone” amounting to less than 1 percent of the campus where students are allowed to pass out pamphlets and espouse their opinions. While passing out the copies and collecting signatures against this policy, the students were spotted in a “residential area” by campus officials, Campus Reform reports. The students were on a sidewalk […]

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  • FIRE’s Mounting Lawsuit Attacks Bringing Free Speech Back to College Campuses

    September 24, 2014

    By Nat Hentoff at CATO Institute In what may become the most compelling free-speech campaign in our educational history, FIRE (Foundation For Individual Rights in Education) has embarked on a lawsuit campaign to restore and guarantee the existence of free speech on our college campuses. Speaking before the National Press Club in Washington on July 1, Greg Lukianoff, President of FIRE, first focused on speech codes that ban from college campuses such offensive speech as “inconsiderate jokes” and “inappropriately directed laughter” and — believe it or not — passing around copies of the Constitution. Yes, our Constitution! These speech codes also […]

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  • Speech Free and FIRE-d up on U.S. Constitution Day at Modesto Junior College

    September 17, 2014

    By Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee The First Amendment got some exercise at Modesto Junior College, with free-speech walls displaying the profound as well as the profane. Student groups handed out copies of the U.S. Constitution on both MJC campuses in honor of Constitution Day. “I like it. I think it’s a good way to get things in a public forum,” said theater major Ethan Lang on Wednesday after posting this quote by a favorite comedian, the late George Carlin: “The best thing about anything is not knowing what it is.” Looking around the posts, Lang said, “You can see […]

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  • Modesto Junior College Free-Speech Activist, Student Groups Join to Celebrate Constitution Day

    September 12, 2014

    By Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee This Constitution Day, student groups at Modesto Junior College will come together to hand out free copies of the U.S. document. Among them will be the man who last year sued the school to protect students’ right to free speech. The Associated Students of Modesto Junior College, College Republicans and Pirates for Liberty Club will distribute the Constitution copies from noon to 2 p.m. Wednesday in the east campus quad and on the west campus outside of the Mary Stuart Rogers Student Learning Center. “We want to inform students on their basic rights as […]

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  • Trending: Conservatives, Christians Take Campus Battles to Court – And Win

    August 11, 2014

    By Jennifer Kabbany at The College Fix They’ve been ordered not to hand out copies of the U.S. Constitution. They’ve been denied promotions because of their faith. They’ve been forced to help pay for abortion-inducing birth control. They’ve been judged solely by the color of their skin. And they’re fighting back. And they’re winning. Conservative and Christian students and professors who have been denied free speech or faced discrimination and religious persecution because of their beliefs have recently enjoyed a string of courthouse victories in what’s amounting to something of a banner year for such causes. There’s been at least six […]

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  • Colleges: Drop Your Speech Codes

    August 8, 2014

    By David Moshman at The Huffington Post This summer, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) initiated four new First Amendment lawsuits against college censors. Additional lawsuits will follow, it announced, until unconstitutional speech codes, which are common across the nation, have been eliminated. How should college officials respond? Here’s some free advice: Join the quest for intellectual freedom in higher education. Eliminating a speech code costs nothing, will make you look good, may avoid a lawsuit and, best of all, is the right thing to do. I will elaborate on these four reasons below. But first, let’s look more closely at college […]

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  • New Video: More Shocking Details at College That Tried to Quarantine the Constitution

    July 9, 2014

    By Susan Kruth at The Huffington Post Last September 17, Modesto Junior College (MJC) student Robert Van Tuinen planned to celebrate Constitution Day by handing out copies of the Constitution at the California public campus. Plainly ignoring the guarantees of the First Amendment, campus security and a member of the MJC staff told Van Tuinen that he could hand out his written materials only in a small “free speech zone” and only with prior permission. So Van Tuinen took MJC to court, ultimately securing his and his peers’ rights to free expression with the help of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education […]

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  • Pond Could Work Wonders to Help Tuolumne County through Drought

    July 7, 2014

    By Jeff  Jardine at The Modesto Bee IMPORTANT PUDDLE – Most years, if someone emailed you a press release extolling the completion of a 26.2 acre-foot reservoir, the response might be “LOL! Where’s the Epsom salts?” But in a drought, every gallon counts. That is why the Tuolumne Utilities District is ballyhooing the expansion of its Matelot Reservoir near Columbia. Just six weeks ago, it had a capacity of 6 acre-feet. The bigger, better version holds enough water to supply customers in the Columbia area for about three weeks and also supplies the Cal Fire Columbia Air Attack Base. Normally, the reservoir […]

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  • MJC Given Muzzle Award Over Constitution Incident

    April 9, 2014

    By Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee Modesto Junior College has earned the dubious national distinction of a 2014 Jefferson Muzzle award, one of nine instances of what the judges considered egregious attempts to censor free expression. MJC made the list for denying a student the right to hand out free copies of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day, Sept. 17. A staff member was caught on videotape saying free speech was available only during a reserved time slot on a small concrete area on the east campus quad. On the list compiled by the nonprofit, the Virginia-based Thomas Jefferson Center […]

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  • Are US colleges and universities becoming free-speech-free?

    March 10, 2014

    by Richard Cameron at Communities Digital News WASHINGTON, March 10, 2014 – Earlier this month, a Harvard senior named Sandra Y.L. Corn wrote an opinion piece in the university’s student publication, Crimson, arguing that academic freedom be tossed overboard in favor of an arbitrary standard of ‘academic justice’. The idea was that because Harvard still permits Professors to even discuss ideas, concepts and theories which the majority (or perhaps – bellicose minority) of the student body considers politically incorrect, a narrow, sanitized curriculum should be adopted, which entirely excludes opposing propositions. A tsunami of intolerance among progressives is leaving academic blight in it’s wake […]

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  • Going in reverse down free-speech road?

    March 8, 2014

    By Jeff Jardine at The Modesto Bee Fifty years ago this fall, the Free Speech Movement rocked the UC Berkeley campus. The short version: It represented a clash between school/government officials who sought to stop students from promoting and raising funds for political causes on the campus by declaring rules prohibiting such activities would be strictly enforced. The administrators, in essence, had created a double standard: The military could set up recruiting stations on campus as the Vietnam War ramped up, yet students were told they couldn’t set up tables at the corner of Bancroft and Telegraph avenues. What began as […]

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  • Another problematic policy bites the dust

    March 7, 2014

    by Bog Kellogg at OneNewsNow A California junior college has to fork over $50,000 to settle a lawsuit for previously refusing to deal with its unconstitutional speech policies. When Modesto Junior College student Robert Van Tuinen tried to hand out copies of the Constitution on Constitution Day, he was told that was not permitted on campus. Then when he took a video camera to meet with a school official and plead his case, Robert Shibley of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) says the student was turned away. “When he brought his concerns to the folks at Modesto, obviously, as you […]

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  • The search for truth at Modesto Junior College

    March 6, 2014

    by Debra J. Saunders at SFGate Last year in a column, “Speaking Truth to Power at Modesto Junior College,”  I wrote about Army veteran/student Robert Van Tuinen who decided to celebrate U.S. Constitution Day on Sept. 17 by handing out copies of the Constitution at said institution of higher learning. A security guard told Van Tuinen that he couldn’t hand out the Constitution. An administrative aide explained the campus “time-place-and-manner free speech area.” Van Tuinen reached out to academic freedom group The FIRE and sued.   The Yosemite Community College District reportedly settled the lawsuit. Or  maybe not. Here’s  a link to the settlement. Then Chancellor Joan E. Smith wrote this […]

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  • Good week for backers of personal liberties

    March 3, 2014

    By Jim Sbick at Times News Online Safeguarding our personal liberties one of the most important features of a democratic society was in the news cycle last week. Thursday marked the fifth anniversary of the Tea Party, one of the major grass-roots groups whose members believe that the federal government has become too large and powerful. Supporters are strongly dedicated to the Constitution, free-market policies, and reducing the national debt and federal budget deficit by reducing U.S. government spending and taxes. Tea party support has declined some since 2010, when the health care law was the the focus of opposition. […]

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  • Oakland Tribune editorial: Modesto Junior College right to admit its mistake and remove campus free-speech limits

    February 28, 2014

    Editorial at Inside Bay Area News Sometimes, the student can be the teacher. That’s a lesson driven home to officials at Modesto Junior College on Monday as they agreed to pay $50,000 to MJC student and Army veteran Robert Van Tuinen in settlement of a lawsuit alleging that the college had violated his free-speech rights. Van Tuinen’s suit was brought last fall after campus officials tried to prevent him from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution to other students in a public area of the campus — on Constitution Day, no less. They argued that doing so was against their […]

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  • California College Student Wins Settlement in Free Speech Case

    February 27, 2014

    By Bethany Monk at CitizenLink An Army veteran who was prohibited from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution last year — on National Constitution day — won a settlement against a California college earlier this week. Robert Van Tuinen was attempting to hand out copies of the document on Sept. 17, the 226th anniversary of its signing. A Modesto Junior College (MJC) campus security guard told him he had to register first. Greg Lukianoff, president of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), said Van Tuinen was also told he had to remain inside a “free speech area.” He […]

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  • ‘Freedom wins,’ says Modesto Junior College student, but free speech lawsuit settlement not final

    February 27, 2014

    by Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee MODESTO — The Yosemite Community College District has opened up free-speech areas as sought by a federal lawsuit, but a settlement announced earlier this week has not happened, Chancellor Joan Smith said. Robert Van Tuinen, a Modesto Junior College student, filed the lawsuit Oct. 10 after MJC staff prevented him from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on Sept. 17, Constitution Day. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education paid the legal costs to file the lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Fresno, Van Tuinen said at the time, adding he did not expect […]

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  • Student Prevented From Handing Out Copies Of The Constitution Wins Lawsuit Against College

    February 27, 2014

    by Tim Cushing at TechDirt from the free-speech-can’t-be-‘zoned’ dept Robert Van Tuinen, the Modesto Junior College student who was told by school administration that he couldn’t pass out copies of the Constitution on campus, has won his lawsuit (filed with FIRE [Foundation for Individual Rights in Education]) against the school. California’s Modesto Junior College (MJC) [has] agreed to settle a First Amendment lawsuit filed last October by student Robert Van Tuinen, whom the college prevented from handing out copies of the Constitution on Constitution Day… As part of the settlement, MJC has revised its policies to allow free speech in open areas across campus and has agreed […]

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  • Student teaches a lesson

    February 27, 2014

    From an editorial by The Bay Area News Service Sometimes, the student can be the teacher. That’s a lesson driven home to officials at Modesto Junior College on Monday as they agreed to pay $50,000 to MJC student and Army veteran Robert Van Tuinen in settlement of a lawsuit alleging that the college had violated his free-speech rights. Van Tuinen’s suit was brought last fall after campus officials tried to prevent him from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution to other students in a public area of the campus — on Constitution Day, no less. They argued that doing […]

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  • Contra Costa Times editorial: Modesto Junior College right to admit its mistake and remove campus free-speech limits

    February 26, 2014

    Contra Costa Times editorial at Bay Area News Group Sometimes, the student can be the teacher. That’s a lesson driven home to officials at Modesto Junior College on Monday as they agreed to pay $50,000 to MJC student and Army veteran Robert Van Tuinen to settle a lawsuit that alleged the college had violated his free-speech rights. Van Tuinen’s suit was filed last fall after campus officials tried to prevent him from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution to other students in a public area of the campus — on Constitution Day, no less. They argued that doing so was […]

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  • College Loses Its Battle Against Free Speech

    February 26, 2014

    By B. Christopher Agee at Western Journalism While this individual win is good news, patriots must remain vigilant in exposing speech police across the nation to maintain our freedom for future generations. Many of America’s college campuses – especially in the deep blue state of California – are notoriously unhospitable to those espousing any conservative values. Apparently, existing in such a cloistered environment has given some administrators the idea that alternative viewpoints may be silenced. Fortunately for supporters of the First Amendment, at least one college learned an important – and costly – lesson about freedom of speech from a student whose […]

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  • California College Settles Lawsuit Alleging 1st Amendment Violation Of Student Who Handed Out Constitution Copies

    February 26, 2014

    by Ben Bullard at  Personal Liberty Digest In September, we wrote about how one college student’s civic-minded attempt to exercise his 1st Amendment guarantee of free speech backfired awfully at a California junior college. But after a lawsuit and several rounds of bad publicity, the college has backed down, agreeing to pay damages and promising to lift its restrictive “free speech zone” policy. The settlement was a bargain for Modesto Junior College, which bought its way out of bigger potential legal and public relations headaches by agreeing to alter its unConstitutional campus policy and paying plaintiff Robert Van Tuinen $50,000 in damages. In […]

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  • Calif. student whose 1st Amend. rights were violated by college wins suit

    February 26, 2014

    by Katie LaPotin at Red Alert Politics Congratulations go out to Modesto Junior College student Robert Van Tuinen, who has prevailed in his suit against the school for violating his First Amendment right to free speech. The outcome effectively ensures that all college students in the future are permitted to distribute copies of the United States Constitution on campus for years to come. Van Tuinen filed suit in federal court last October against the school and the Yosemite Community College District, charging the district with violating both his First Amendment right to free speech and his right to free speech as guaranteed […]

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  • Calif. college student wins $50K settlement in free speech case

    February 26, 2014

    by Jessica Chasmar at The Washington Times A California student, who was ordered by school officials to stop handing out copies of the Constitution on National Constitution Day, has won a $50,000 settlement against Modesto Junior College. Robert Van Tuinen, 26, also won an agreement to have his school revise its speech codes, which previously limited free speech to a small area students had to register to use, Fox News reported. “They were maintaining an unconstitutional speech code, and now any of my fellow students can go out and exercise their right to free speech,” Mr. Van Tuinen, an Army veteran, told Fox. […]

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  • California college student teaches school $50,000 lesson on Constitution

    February 25, 2014

    At Fox News.com A California college student who was blocked last year from handing out copies of the Constitution gave his school a lesson in civics and the law, winning a $50,000 settlement and an agreement to revise its speech codes. Robert Van Tuinen, 26, settled with Modesto Junior College just five months after his run-in with school officials on Sept. 17 – National Constitution Day. Van Tuinen said he’s more excited about getting the school to revise its speech codes, which previously confined the First Amendment to a small area students had to sign up to use. “They were maintaining […]

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  • California College Learns $50,000 Lesson in Fight With Student Over First Amendment

    February 25, 2014

    by Jason Howerton at The Blaze Last year, Modesto Junior College in Modesto, Calif., ordered a student not to pass out copies of the Constitution. On Monday, the school agreed to a $50,000 settlement and vowed to revise its policies to encourage free speech on campus, a decision officials reached as a result of the student’s First Amendment lawsuit. Robert Van Tuinen, 26, applauded the decision, telling FoxNews.com that the college was enforcing an “unconstitutional speech code.” He said he is happy that his fellow students can all now “go out and exercise their right to free speech.” As reported by TheBlaze in […]

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  • College Loses War Against Constitution

    February 25, 2014

    by Alec Torres at National Review Online In a big win for free-speech rights on college campuses, Modesto Junior College in California settled a lawsuit with a student who was barred from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day. Last September, Robert van Tuinen was told by a campus police officer and a college administrator that he could not pass out Constitutions in a public space without permission from the college or outside of the designated “free-speech zone.” The orange area is the college’s previous “free-speech zone,” the red is where van Tuinen passed out Constitutions. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) […]

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  • Students may now hand out copies of the Constitution on this campus (they couldn’t before)

    February 25, 2014

    by Robby Soave at The Daily Caller A Modesto Junior College student has prevailed in his lawsuit against the administration, meaning that students will now be permitted to exercise their constitutional rights to distribute copies of the Constitution anywhere on campus. Last year, student Robert Van Tuinen attempted to celebrate Constitution Day by handing out copies of the U.S. founding document, which codifies the rights against oppressive public institutions. A campus police officer forced him to cease his activities and hauled him before an administrator, who told Van Tuinen that he was in violation of school policy. He could only […]

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  • Modesto Junior College Reaches Settlement With Robert Van Tuinen in First Amendment Lawsuit

    February 25, 2014

    by Russell Westerholm at University Herald Modesto Junior College (MJC) has agreed on a settlement with a student named Robert Van Tuinen in a First Amendment lawsuit. Five months ago, Van Tuinen posted a video of a campus police officer telling him he had to be in a “free speech area” to pass out copies of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day (WATCH the video below). Since, he has been assisted by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) and represented by Davis Wright Tremaine LLP in Washington, D.C. in filing a lawsuit against the school. According to a press release […]

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  • College Settles Lawsuit Filed by Constitution-Loving Student

    February 25, 2014

    by  Staff at The Washington Free Beacon A college sued by a student prohibited from passing out copies of the Constitution expanded free speech protections and provided $50,000 to the wronged student as part of a settlement reached last night to end the lawsuit. Robert Van Tuinen, who was banned from passing out copies of the Constitution last September, filed alawsuit against Modesto Junior College in October. A videotape of Van Tuinen being told he needed a permit and could only hand out the copies in a small area set aside for free speech at the college sparked widespread criticism. Modesto has revised its policies to allow […]

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  • Modesto Junior College, Columbia College parking costs to jump

    February 13, 2014

    by  Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee Parking fees will double for most at Modesto Junior College and Columbia College this summer. The first parking pass increases in 22 years were approved unanimously by the Yosemite Community College District Board. Wednesday’s decision will raise charges starting with summer session: • Student parking permits will increase from $7.50 for summer to $15; fall and spring semester permits will rise to $30 from $20. • Daily parking fees at both campuses will double, from $1 to $2. • Full-time staff permits will double, from $30 per year to $60. • Part-time staff permits will remain $15 per […]

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  • A new argument for hate-speech laws? Um … no

    February 4, 2014

    by Jonathan Rauch at The Washington Post You know, it’s actually kind of refreshing to read a good old-fashioned listener’s-veto critique of the First Amendment. Like sleeve garters, this is not something we see much of anymore. In a recent Daily Beast article, Thane Rosenbaum of Fordham Law School points out that hate speech and the like can cause serious pain and suffering. From there he jumps to the conclusion that such speech should be restricted. “Free speech should not stand in the way of common decency.” Hmm. That’s a big jump, from harm to restriction. Of course homophobic and anti-Semitic expressions hurt […]

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  • YCCD to make changes to free speech policy

    January 5, 2014

    by Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee

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  • YCCD gets extension in Modesto Junior College free speech lawsuit

    December 28, 2013

    by Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee

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  • VIDEO: College eliminates free speech zone after student sues school for refusing to allow him to pass out pocket Constitutions

    December 18, 2013

    by Timothy Dionisopoulos at Campus Reform

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  • Yosemite Community College District board to address free speech policy on campuses

    December 9, 2013

    by Nan Austin by The Modesto Bee

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  • Pardon these turkeys

    November 27, 2013

    by George Will at The Washington Post

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  • Big Brother’s Lawyers

    November 8, 2013

    by Ronald Collins at Concurring Opinions

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  • Tinker continues crusade for First-Amendment, student empowerment

    November 5, 2013

    By Katy Cardin at USA Today College

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  • Professor Fires Off Lengthy Email In Defense Of Student Forbidden From Handing Out Copies Of The Constitution

    November 1, 2013

    by Tim Cushing at Techdirt

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  • Charles C. Haynes: Are colleges conceding their role as free speech bastions?

    October 30, 2013

    by Charles Haynes at The Times Herald

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  • Speaking truth to power at Modesto Junior College

    October 18, 2013

    by Debra Saunders Army veteran Robert Van Tuinen decided to celebrate U.S. Constitution Day on Sept. 17 by handing out copies of the Constitution at Modesto Junior College, where he is a student. If he had been at UC Berkeley or another politically correct campus, some liberal students probably would have picked an argument with him, maybe even accused him of hate speech. But as this was Modesto Junior College, Van Tuinen didn’t attract a lot of notice. Until, that is, a security guard told Van Tuinen that he couldn’t hand out the Constitution. Or the Communist Manifesto, for that matter. On an edited video, […]

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  • Modesto Junior College Student Files Lawsuit Alleging Violation of First Amendment Right to Free Speech Read

    October 11, 2013

    by Russell Westerholm at University Herald

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  • Student stopped from handing out Constitutions on Constitution Day sues

    October 10, 2013

    by Tal Kopan at POLITICO

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  • College’s hindering of free speech both disturbing and unconstitutional

    October 10, 2013

    by Charles Haynes at Livingston County Daily Press & Argus

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  • MJC student files freedom of speech lawsuit against college

    October 10, 2013

    by Nan Austin at The Modesto Bee

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  • Free speech is being zoned out on campus

    October 4, 2013

    by Charles Haynes at Albert Lea Tribune

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  • EDITORIAL: Remembering the Constitution

    September 25, 2013

    Editorial at The Washington Times

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  • Student denied constitutional rights speaks out against college

    September 24, 2013

    by Robby Soave at The Daily Caller

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  • California college investigates unconstitutional anti-Constitution policy

    September 23, 2013

    by Robby Soave at The Daily Caller

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  • California college investigates unconstitutional anti-Constitution policy

    September 23, 2013

    by Robby Soave at The Daily Caller

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  • BEGGS: It All Depends on What the Meaning of “Free” Is

    September 21, 2013

    by Leslie Beggs at The Modesto Bee

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  • College student claims he was denied free speech

    September 20, 2013

    by Tim Daly at News 10

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  • Video Shows Student And Officer Arguing Over Free Speech Rights On Campus

    September 20, 2013

    25-year-old student Robert Van Tuinen was passing out pocket-sized constitutions at Modesto Junior College in California to celebrate Constitution Day on September 17. However, he was quickly stopped by a police officer. The confrontation was caught on camera. The police officer tells Robert that he can only pass out constitutions in a designated spot on campus, a free speech spot, and only if he obtains permission in advance from school security. Robert proceeds to ask the officer if he thinks that is a violation of free speech and first amendment rights, to which the officer replies, “I’m sure it is…but […]

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  • California College Campus Bars Student From Handing Out Copies of the Constitution

    September 20, 2013

    by Heather Ginsberg at Townhall.com

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  • Calif. college student stopped from handing out Constitution on Constitution Day (Video)

    September 20, 2013

    by Joe Newby at Examiner.com

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  • This Student’s Constitutional Rights Were Violated On the Day Intended to Celebrate Them

    September 20, 2013

    by Gerard Emershaw at PolicyMic

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  • Students Told They Can’t Pass Out Constitution on Constitution Day

    September 20, 2013

    Edtiorial at The Washington Free Beacon

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  • Video: Cali. College Stops Student From Handing Out Constitutions On Constitution Day

    September 20, 2013

    by Mikael Thalen at InfoWars.com

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  • Freedom of speech? College student stopped from handing out copies of the Constitution

    September 20, 2013

    on RT.com

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  • Video: California college forbids passing out Constitutions… on Constitution Day

    September 20, 2013

    On Hot Air

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  • Student barred from distributing copies of the Constitution –on Constitution Day!

    September 20, 2013

    On Catholic Online

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  • Calif. Student Told to Stop Passing Out Constitutions on Constitution Day

    September 20, 2013

    by Alec Torres at National Review Online

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  • California college bars student from handing out copies of Constitution

    September 19, 2013

    on Fox News

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  • Modesto Junior College Student Stopped From Handing out Copies of the U.S. Constitution on Constitution Day (VIDEO)

    September 19, 2013

    by Russell Westerholm in University Herald

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  • What This California College Wouldn’t Let a Student Do on ‘Constitution Day’ May Make Your Blood Boil

    September 19, 2013

    by Jason Howerton on The Blaze

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  • Campus cop stops student from handing out Constitutions… ON CONSTITUTION DAY

    September 19, 2013

    by Robby Soave in The Daily Caller

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  • You Can’t Hand Out the Constitution Without a Permit, Says Modesto Junior College

    September 19, 2013

    by Brian Doherty on Hit and Run Happy Constitution Day, kids of Modesto Junior College! Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) reports on the latest from the world of "Free Speech Zones" in the U.S. of A: Modesto Junior College in California told a student that he could not pass out copies of the United States Constitution outside the student center on September 17, 2013—Constitution Day. Captured on video, college police and administrators demanded that Robert Van Tuinen stop passing out Constitution pamphlets and told him that he would only be allowed to pass them out in the college’s […]

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  • Student at California college told he can’t pass out Constitutions on Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    by Kelsey Osterman at Red Alert Politics

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  • MJC halt of Constitution handout lands on YouTube

    September 19, 2013

    by Nan Austin in The Modesto Bee

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  • California College Tells Student He Can’t Hand Out Copies Of The Constitution On Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    by Tim Cushing on TechDirt

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  • Student Barred From Distributing Copies Of The U.S. Constitution On Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    by Nina Kate in Opposing Views

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  • Student Barred From Distributing Copies Of The U.S. Constitution On Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    by Nina Kate on OpposingViews. Passing out free copies of the United States Constitution may seem like a reasonable way to celebrate Constitution Day; but in an apparent infringement of the Constitution’s own First Amendment, one California college prevented a student from doing just that. On September 17, Robert Van Tuinen of Modesto Junior College reportedly stood outside the student resource center handing out pamphlets of the Constuition for approximately 10 minutes before campus police approached him and demanded that he cease. According to college regulations, Tuinen was only permitted to hand out materials in the designated “free speech zone,” implying […]

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  • Modesto Junior College Obligingly Beclowns Itself To Make A Point About Censorship

    September 19, 2013

    by Ken White on Popehat

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  • VIDEO: Public school bans students from handing out Constitutions on Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    by Timothy Dionisopoulos on Campus Reform.

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  • MJC halt of Constitution handout lands on YouTube

    September 19, 2013

    by Nan Austin in The Modesto Bee.

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  • Modesto Junior College: Open and Persistent Defiance of the Constitution?

    November 11, 2015

    Modesto Junior College (MJC) in California must really like being in the free speech spotlight. Followers of FIRE will recognize the college’s name, since we helped student Robert Van Tuinen sue MJC for violating his First Amendment rights by restricting him from handing out copies of the Constitution on campus—on Constitution Day. (It was even caught on video.) MJC settled that lawsuit on February 24, 2014 for $50,000 in damages and attorney’s fees. The school also agreed to abolish its free speech zone—a tiny concrete stage—and reform some of its policies to respect students’ free speech rights. Under normal circumstances, […]

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  • FIRE Celebrates Constitution Day 2015

    September 17, 2015

    Today is Constitution Day, marking the 228th anniversary of the day the drafters signed the U.S. Constitution. It’s a day we cherish at FIRE for many reasons, but particularly because so many students celebrate by exercising their First Amendment rights on campus. Sometimes the simple act of handing out a copy of the Constitution can gain national attention. For instance, on Constitution Day 2013, Robert Van Tuinen, trying to increase awareness of his campus chapter of Young Americans for Liberty (YAL), was stopped from handing out Constitutions at Modesto Junior College in California. That incident prompted the first lawsuit in […]

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  • FIRE Announces 10 Worst Colleges for Free Speech in 2014

    March 2, 2015

    PHILADELPHIA, March 2, 2015—More than half of America’s top colleges maintain speech codes that blatantly violate First Amendment standards. But every year the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) takes a closer look at the previous year’s incidents of college censorship to determine the nation’s 10 worst abusers of student and faculty free speech rights. This year’s list of the 10 worst colleges for free speech—published with detailed descriptions at The Huffington Post—includes many public colleges or universities bound by the First Amendment. Some of them, on the other hand, are private colleges that, though not required by the […]

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  • Constitution Day 2014: What a Difference a Year Makes

    September 18, 2014

    September 17, 2013—last year’s Constitution Day—turned out to be a dark moment in the history of free speech on America’s campuses. That was the day Robert Van Tuinen was stopped from handing out Constitutions on the campus of Modesto Junior College (MJC) in California. He had neglected to sign up to use the school’s tiny “free speech area,” the only place that a student was allowed to hand out literature. On the same day, an administrator at Citrus College (also in California) told student Vinny Sinapi-Riddle that he could be removed from campus for seeking another student’s signature on a […]

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  • FIRE’s Joe Cohn Speaking at Modesto Junior College Tomorrow for Constitution Day

    September 16, 2014

    Students, faculty, and FIRE supporters in the Modesto, California, area are invited to hear FIRE Legislative and Policy Director Joe Cohn speak at Modesto Junior College, home of one of FIRE’s most noteworthy cases, tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. in Founders Hall 212. Joe will be speaking about student rights on campus in honor of Constitution Day.

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  • Azhar Majeed’s Simple Message to College Administrators: End Censorship, or Else

    September 3, 2014

    My colleague Azhar Majeed, Director of FIRE’s Individual Rights Education Program, published an op-ed in The Huffington Post yesterday with an important back-to-school message for college administrators: Eliminate speech codes, or get ready to head to court.

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  • Modesto Junior College’s Lawyer: Colleges, Dump Your Speech Codes

    August 22, 2014

    Every advocate dreams of winning over an opponent, but it rarely happens. It’s just possible, though, that FIRE might have done so. David Urban of the law firm Liebert Cassidy Whitmore has written a thorough and insightful post on his firm’s blog advising colleges and universities to review their speech-related policies to insulate themselves from the threat of litigation—like FIRE’s new Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project.

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  • Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project Makes Media Splash

    July 2, 2014

    Yesterday, FIRE launched our new Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project, a national effort to eliminate unconstitutional speech codes through targeted First Amendment lawsuits. Within minutes of the announcement, major media outlets were spreading the word, and over the past 24 hours, the nation’s top newspapers have reported on this big step in the fight for free speech on campus. Here is some of yesterday’s and today’s news coverage of Stand Up For Speech and the four lawsuits FIRE brought yesterday with the help of law firm Davis Wright Tremaine:

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  • Go Behind the Scenes of the Struggle for Free Speech at Modesto J.C. (VIDEO)

    June 25, 2014

    Today, FIRE has released a new video chronicling the struggle for free speech at Modesto Junior College (MJC) in California, where student Robert Van Tuinen was famously prevented from distributing copies of the U.S. Constitution, on Constitution Day, no less.

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  • Thomas Jefferson Center Announces 2014 ‘Muzzle’ Awards

    April 10, 2014

    Thomas Jefferson’s birthday is on Sunday, and that means it’s time for the “Jefferson Muzzle” awards, granted by the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression! Torch readers won’t be surprised to see a few FIRE cases on this year’s list of “winners.”

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  • Speech Code of the Month: Colorado Mesa University

    April 7, 2014

    FIRE announces its Speech Code of the Month for April 2014: Colorado Mesa University. Colorado Mesa’s policy on “Free Speech” limits students’ expressive activities to just one “concrete patio” on the university’s 86-acre campus. While the university has the right to enact reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions, courts have held time and again that onerous restrictions like this one are not reasonable.

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  • Speech Code at Modesto Junior College Fixed. Who’s Next?

    March 17, 2014

    Six months ago today, Modesto Junior College officials stopped student Robert Van Tuinen from distributing copies of the Constitution on campus, prompting him to file suit for violation of his First Amendment rights. Last Friday, Van Tuinen’s lawyers filed a stipulation for dismissal of his lawsuit in federal court, the final step in implementing the settlement that resulted in a complete overhaul of Modesto Junior College’s (MJC’s) speech policies and expectations as well as a $50,000 payment.

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  • Victory: Modesto Junior College Settles Student’s First Amendment Lawsuit

    February 25, 2014

    Yesterday evening, California’s Modesto Junior College (MJC) agreed to settle a First Amendment lawsuit filed last October by student Robert Van Tuinen, whom the college prevented from handing out copies of the Constitution on Constitution Day. The videotaped incident drew national media attention.

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  • 2013 in Review: Threats from Washington, Victories in the States

    December 30, 2013

    As 2013 comes to a close, the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) looks back on a year that was headlined by dire threats to free speech and student rights on campus.

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  • Support FIRE’s Fight Against Free Speech Zones

    December 24, 2013

    The free speech gazebo. 0.1%. A “little cement area.” 10-day advance registration. As far too many students sadly know, the vocabulary of campus free speech zones provides a ready example of the absurdity of campus censorship. This year, administrators at Modesto Junior College proved just how far that absurdity extends when they prohibited student Robert Van Tuinen from distributing copies of the Constitution on Constitution Day simply because he hadn’t met the requirements of the school’s free speech zone policy. Robert’s experience isn’t all that unique. Rather than celebrating free expression, too many of our colleges and universities confine it to small areas, restrict it […]

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  • California College Suspends Speech Restrictions Amidst Settlement Talks

    December 18, 2013

    FRESNO, Calif., Dec. 18, 2013—Modesto Junior College (MJC) has agreed to suspend enforcement of its “free speech zone” as it negotiates an end to a federal lawsuit filed by a student prevented from handing out copies of the Constitution on campus on Constitution Day. A joint stipulation filed in federal district court yesterday by MJC and attorneys for student Robert Van Tuinen states that the parties have agreed on several significant revisions to the college’s “free speech policies and procedures,” pending final approval by the Yosemite Community College District, expected this spring. “FIRE welcomes this development as a sign that Modesto Junior College is […]

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  • University of Georgia Student Paper Reports on School’s ‘Yellow Light’ Rating

    November 15, 2013

    Wednesday’s edition of The Red & Black, the student newspaper at the University of Georgia (UGA), has an article on the school’s “yellow light” speech code rating. Based on an interview with Samantha Harris, FIRE’s director of policy research, Dillon Richards’ article explains UGA’s problematic policies, which include a 48-hour waiting period for approval to demonstrate anywhere outside of two designated “free speech zones.” The university’s legal counsel declined to comment, leaving Jan Barham, the associate dean of students, to defend the policies. Barham revealed once again how hard it is to explain why limiting speech on universities campuses is a good idea. Barham, like […]

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  • Mary Beth Tinker Discusses Student Rights, Modesto Junior College Incident with ‘USA Today College’

    November 11, 2013

    In USA Today College, reporter and student Katy Cardin spoke with noted Supreme Court litigant Mary Beth Tinker about The Tinker Tour, her campaign to teach students across the country about the First Amendment. Tinker discusses the violation of student rights on college campuses and colleges’ tendency to silence student opinions rather than encourage them. She also references FIRE’s case at Modesto Junior College (MJC), where a student was stopped from handing out copies of the Constitution on his campus. According to Tinker, the best way to fight censorship like the kind seen at MJC is by spreading the message of free speech: We’re doing it by telling […]

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  • Ron Collins on ‘Dystopian,’ ‘Destructive’ Folly of Campus Free Speech Zones

    November 8, 2013

    Over at Concurring Opinions, noted legal scholar and author Ron Collins has penned a compelling look at the folly of campus free speech zones. Collins writes: Free speech zone – It is shorthand for holding two contradictory opinions while believing in both of them. Incongruous logic, to be sure. And yet, that is the mindset that too many public college administrators impose on students in an attempt to make them believe that the best way to honor the First Amendment is by abridging it. They do so by restricting student speech to tiny “free speech zones” and by strictly controlling access thereto. Such Orwellian […]

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  • ‘San Francisco Chronicle’ on Modesto’s Speech Policies

    October 21, 2013

    Earlier this month, Modesto Junior College (MJC) student Robert Van Tuinen filed suit against the school after several administrators ordered him to stop handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on September 17—Constitution Day. Columnist Debra J. Saunders took to the San Francisco Chronicle on Friday to explain why readers shouldn’t be reassured by MJC President Jill Stearns’ claims that the school’s policies allow for free expression: In a statement, college President Jill Stearns asserted, “There is absolutely no requirement that a student register weeks in advance and hand out his literature only in a small marked area.” But a security guard and staff binder suggest […]

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  • Happy Fall From FIRE!

    October 17, 2013

    The fall is off to a blistering pace. FIRE staffers are already meeting with supporters in over 25 cities and more than 15 states across the country this semester with more to come. We’re also well on the way to having the highest number of case submissions in our 14-year history!

    » Read More

  • Lawsuit! Student Ordered to Stop Handing Out Constitutions on Constitution Day Files Suit

    October 10, 2013

    A student who was ordered by college administrators to stop handing out copies of the Constitution on campus—on Constitution Day—filed suit today in federal court. Modesto Junior College (MJC) student and Army veteran Robert Van Tuinen is suing the Yosemite Community College District and MJC administrators for violating his First Amendment rights. Van Tuinen is represented by the law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine and is assisted by FIRE.

    » Read More

  • Modesto Doubles Down on Unconstitutional Policies, Claims School Protects Free Speech by Restricting It

    September 23, 2013

    Over the weekend, Modesto Junior College (MJC) President Jill Stearns published a statement in The Modesto Bee responding to the public outcry that arose from the school’s demand that student Robert Van Tuinen stop handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution to his fellow students on Constitution Day. The incident “motivated a vast number of individuals across our country to voice their concern through email and phone calls,” according to Stearns. While some of the communications were evidently personal attacks directed toward MJC staff (which is lamentable), Stearns concedes that a great number of the calls and emails represented a […]

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  • Modesto Junior College’s Attempts at Damage Control Fail

    September 20, 2013

    When government officials say something stupid, their PR folks quickly devise a strategy to “walk back” the statement. Modesto Junior College has skipped walking and is sprinting back its unwise decision to stop a student from distributing copies of the Constitution on Constitution Day. As well it should. Here’s the statement that appeared on its Facebook page within hours of FIRE’s press release exposing Modesto’s policy of requiring students to sign up in advance to use a “free speech zone” to express their views: The Yosemite Community College District’s (YCCD) colleges have free speech areas on campus for activities such as distributing materials […]

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  • California College Forbids Passing Out Constitutions… On Constitution Day

    September 19, 2013

    MODESTO, Calif., September 19, 2013—In a stunning illustration of the attitude taken towards free speech by too many colleges across the United States, Modesto Junior College in California told a student that he could not pass out copies of the United States Constitution outside the student center on September 17, 2013—Constitution Day. Captured on video, college police and administrators demanded that Robert Van Tuinen stop passing out Constitution pamphlets and told him that he would only be allowed to pass them out in the college’s tiny free speech zone, and only after scheduling it several days or weeks ahead of […]

    » Read More