School Spotlight
University of Hawaii at Hilo
Speech Code Rating
Student Conduct Code
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021Any conduct that threatens or endangers the health or safety of any person including but not limited to, physical abuse, verbal abuse, threats, intimidation, harassment, bullying, coercion, stalking as defined below. … a. Threat is written or verbal conduct that causes a reasonable expectation of injury to the... Read MoreUH Systemwide Policies and Procedures: EP 2.210- Use and Management of Information Technology Resources
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Internet Usage Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021Users may not engage in the transmission of unsolicited bulk email (“spamming”), regardless of how important it may seem to the sender. Email is a form of individual communication, not a public forum, and should not be used to express opinions or forward views to those who have not expressed a wish to engage in the ... Read MoreStudent Conduct Code
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Internet Usage Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021Theft or other abuse of computer and other electronic facilities and resources, including but not limited to: … Use of computing facilities and resources to send obscene or abusive messages. Read MoreUniversity Housing Policies & Resources: Room Alterations
Speech Code Rating: Yellow
Speech Code Category: Posting and Distribution Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021Residents may be required to remove materials that are deemed offensive by the community … Read MoreFree Expression on the UH Hilo Campus
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Protest and Demonstration Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021The University of Hawaiʻi is committed to the free and open exchange of ideas and affirms the rights of members of the university community to engage in speech and other expressive activity guaranteed by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and by Article I, Section 4 of the Constitution of the State of Hawa... Read MoreUH Systemwide Policies and Procedures: EP 1.204- Interim Policy on Title IX Sexual Harassment
Speech Code Rating: Green
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: October 4, 2021Title IX Sexual Harassment is defined as conduct on the basis of sex that satisfies one or more of the following: … Unwelcome conduct, determined by a reasonable person, to be so severe, and pervasive, and objectively offensive, that it effectively denies a person equal access to the University’s educati... Read More
University of Hawaii at Hilo – Stand Up For Speech Lawsuit
April 24, 2014
These students were kept from distributing Constitutions on campus.
On campus, even the Constitution isn’t safe on Constitution Day
September 17, 2018
Much of FIRE’s advocacy on behalf of college students’ civil rights — including freedom of speech, conscience, press, and more — springs from the guidance of a single source: The United States Constitution. But despite its status as the nation’s preeminent founding legal document, some public campus administrators still don’t fully understand the expressive rights it… Read more
Successful Student Plaintiff Shouts Out FIRE with Graduation Garb
May 13, 2016
University of Hawaii-Hilo (UH) student Merritt Burch had a busy 2014. In January, she was prevented from handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on campus. In April, she joined with her fellow student Anthony Vizzone to file a First Amendment lawsuit against UH as part of FIRE’s Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project. And… Read more
Ninth Circuit Cites ‘Professional Standards’ in Allowing University to Punish Student Speech
December 30, 2015
Yesterday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit handed down its decision in Oyama v. University of Hawaii, damaging students’ ability to exercise their First Amendment rights while enrolled in professional certification programs. As FIRE staff members have observed before, universities sometimes punish students (or threaten to punish students) for constitutionally protected expression… Read more
Another Student Stopped From Handing Out Constitutions: Q&A With Anthony Vizzone
June 17, 2015
Anthony Vizzone just wanted to hand out copies of the Constitution and recruit students for his student organization—the University of Hawaii at Hilo Young Americans for Liberty (YAL). But when he crossed the “imaginary boundaries” of his university’s free speech zone, administrators were there to stop him. [iframe src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/JHK7xJE9pEw”] Anthony wasn’t content to let his… Read more
Grassroot Institute of Hawaii to Present Award to Stand Up For Speech Plaintiffs
January 29, 2015
People pay attention when you stand up for speech. Tomorrow, the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii will recognize Merritt Burch and Anthony Vizzone with the 2015 Unsung Hero Award for their work challenging speech codes at the University of Hawaii at Hilo. As Torch readers know, Merritt and Anthony were among the plaintiffs in the inaugural… Read more
FIRE’s Will Creeley: Vague Professional Codes Threaten Student Speech Rights
January 16, 2015
In the coming months, federal appellate courts are set to decide two important cases about the extent to which colleges can use vague, broad “professional codes” to punish student speech. FIRE’s Will Creeley has the scoop on both of the cases, and he explained why they’re worth watching in The Huffington Post yesterday. First is… Read more
Stand Up For Speech Plaintiffs Celebrated in ‘Honolulu Star-Advertiser’
December 29, 2014
Last Friday, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser celebrated Merritt Burch and Anthony Vizzone, the successful student-plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the University of Hawaii at Hilo, part of FIRE’s Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project. As part of a feature on “Heroes Next Door,” the paper takes nominations for “true unsung heroes” from the community, seeking to… Read more
Media Spreads the Word About Stand Up For Speech Lawsuit Victories
December 10, 2014
Last week, in the space of 24 hours, FIRE’s Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project scored two victories in the fight for First Amendment rights on campus. On December 2, 2014, the University of Hawaii (UH) agreed to a settlement with two students, Merritt Burch and Anthony Vizzone, who had been stopped from passing out… Read more
U. of Hawaii Settles Lawsuit Over Handing Out Constitutions
December 2, 2014
HONOLULU, December 2, 2014—In a victory for free speech, the University of Hawaii (UH) agreed today to settle a First Amendment lawsuit filed by two students at UH’s Hilo campus. Students Merritt Burch and Anthony Vizzone sued UH after one administrator stopped Burch from passing out copies of the U.S. Constitution and another told both… Read more
FIRE, ADF File ‘Amici’ Brief in Eighth Circuit for Student Expelled for Facebook Posts
November 20, 2014
Yesterday, FIRE and Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed an amici curiae (“friends of the court”) brief (PDF) with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, arguing that a federal district court incorrectly dismissed former Central Lakes College (CLC) student Craig Keefe’s First Amendment lawsuit against the school. Keefe was a nursing student at… Read more
University of Hawaii at Manoa Students Want to Follow UH Hilo’s Lead on Free Speech
October 31, 2014
Last spring, the University of Hawaii at Hilo (UH Hilo) did the right thing, albeit under pressure from a First Amendment lawsuit (part of FIRE’s Stand Up For Speech Litigation Project) by two students who had been prevented from handing out copies of the Constitution on campus: The university administration implemented an interim speech policy… Read more
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… Read more
Students Return to Campus Censorship, But Fight Back with FIRE
September 2, 2014
PHILADELPHIA, September 2, 2014—As millions of college students arrive on campus this fall—many for the first time—few of them realize that nearly 59 percent of our nation’s colleges maintain policies that clearly and substantially restrict speech protected by the First Amendment. Too many students will realize that the rights they took for granted as Americans… Read more
U. of Hawaii at Hilo Suspends Restrictive ‘Free Speech Zone’ While Lawsuit Proceeds
May 16, 2014
Facing a federal lawsuit from a student who was ordered to stop handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution on campus, the University of Hawaii at Hilo has announced that it will immediately take interim steps to stop requiring students to limit their spontaneous political expression to a tiny “free speech zone.” FIRE coordinated last month’s lawsuit against the university for this and other First Amendment violations on behalf of students Merritt Burch and Anthony Vizzone.
Where There’s Smoke, There’s FIRE: Two More Allegations of Rights Violations at Hawaii-Hilo
May 2, 2014
Last week, two students, supported by FIRE, filed a lawsuit against the University of Hawaii at Hilo for violating their rights to free expression. Since the lawsuit was filed, other students have come forward alleging violations of their rights.
Students Filing Suit against University of Hawaii at Hilo Make a Media Splash
April 28, 2014
News of the lawsuit at University of Hawaii at Hilo has spread far and wide, even appearing in a Reuters article that appeared in dozens of outlets around the country, including ‘The New York Times.’ Be sure to check out these outlets for their coverage of the suit!
Lawsuit! Another Student Ordered to Stop Handing Out Constitutions on Campus Files Suit in Hawaii
April 24, 2014
A student ordered by administrators to stop handing out copies of the U.S. Constitution at the University of Hawaii at Hilo has filed a lawsuit today in federal court. Merritt Burch is suing the University of Hawaii System for violating her First Amendment rights. She is joined as a plaintiff by fellow student Anthony Vizzone.
FIRE and Student Press Law Center File Brief in ‘Oyama v. University of Hawaii’
December 12, 2013
On Monday, FIRE and the Student Press Law Center (SPLC) filed a brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit as amici curiae (“friends of the court”), asking the appeals court to reverse the district court’s erroneous and dangerous decision in the case of Oyama v. University of Hawaii. The brief was prepared by noted First Amendment expert Eugene Volokh… Read more