University of Michigan – Flint
Location: , Michigan
Website: http://www.umflint.edu
Type: Public
Federal Circuit: 6th Circuit
Speech Code Rating
University of Michigan – Flint has been given the speech code rating Red. A red light university has at least one policy that both clearly and substantially restricts freedom of speech. Read more here.
Red Light Policies
Standard Practice Guide Policies: Sexual Harassment
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 8, 2017- An individual may engage in conduct of a sexual nature that may not be sufficiently severe, persistent or pervasive to constitute sexual harassment as described below, but is nonetheless inappropriate. Such conduct also will not be tolerated by the University, is prohibited by the University and is subject to discipline up to and including termination of employment.
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DEFINITION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT
For the purposes of determining whether a particular course of conduct constitutes sexual harassment under this policy, the following definition will be used:
Some examples of conduct that may constitute sexual harassment include, but are not limited to:
Unwanted sexual statements – sexual or “dirty” jokes, comments on physical attributes, spreading rumors about or rating others as to sexual activity or performance, talking about one’s sexual activity in front of others, and displaying or distributing sexually explicit drawings, pictures and/or written material. Unwanted sexual statements can be made in person, in writing, electronically (email, instant messaging, blogs, web pages, etc.), and otherwise.
Unwanted personal attention – letters, telephone calls, visits, pressure for sexual favors, pressure for unnecessary personal interaction, pressure for dates where a sexual/romantic intent appears evident but remains unwanted, and stalking.
Unwanted physical or sexual advances – touching, hugging, kissing, fondling, touching oneself sexually for others to view, sexual assault, intercourse, or other sexual activity.
Conduct alleged to be sexual harassment will be evaluated by considering the totality of the particular circumstances, including the nature, frequency, intensity, location, context, and duration of the questioned behavior. Although repeated incidents generally create a stronger claim of sexual harassment, a serious incident, even if isolated, can be sufficient.
What is Sexual Misconduct?
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 8, 2017Sexual Harassment
- Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature if: … Conduct that has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s educational performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, offensive, or abusive environment for that individual’s education, living environment, employment, or participation in a University-related activity. Sexual harassment may occur via various communication devices, via social media or via the Internet.
Event and Building Services: Posting Policy
Speech Code Category: Posting and Distribution Policies
Last updated: October 10, 2018All flyers and posters must be approved by the Office of Student Life. If a flyer or poster is distributed without the official Student Life stamp of approval, it will be removed immediately.
Code of Student Conduct: Offenses Against Persons
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 8, 2017Harassment – any severe or pervasive verbal, written, or electronic communication or action that causes a reasonable person to feel emotionally or mentally distressed or frightened. Harassment also includes communication or action that interferes with an individual’s participation in an educational, work, or University activity or environment.
Resident’s Guide to Community Living: Behavior Toward University Staff
Speech Code Category: Policies on Tolerance, Respect, and Civility
Last updated: December 8, 2017Abusive, disrespectful and threatening language (written or verbal) and behavior directed toward University staff, including student staff, is prohibited.
Student Sexual Misconduct Policy
Speech Code Category: Harassment Policies
Last updated: December 8, 2017Sexual Harassment – unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature if … such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s educational performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, offensive, or abusive environment for that individual’s education, living environment, employment, or participation in a University-related activity. Sexual harassment may occur via various communication devices, via social media or via the Internet.
Conduct reported as sexual harassment will be evaluated by considering the totality of the particular circumstances, including the nature, frequency, intensity, location, context, and duration of the alleged behavior. Although repeated incidents generally create a stronger claim of sexual harassment, a serious incident, even if isolated, may violate this policy.
Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to: unwanted sexual statements; unwanted personal attention (e.g., cyber-stalking); unwanted physical or sexual advances that would constitute sexual assault (as defined in this policy); electronic recording, photographing, or transmitting intimate or sexual utterances, sounds, or images without the knowledge and consent of all parties involved; touching oneself sexually for others to view; and voyeurism (e.g., spying on others who are in intimate or sexual situations).
Resident’s Guide to Community Living: Resident Bill of Rights
Speech Code Category: Policies on Tolerance, Respect, and Civility
Last updated: December 8, 2017As a member of the residential community, each resident has the right to: … Be free from intimidation, and verbal, physical, and/or emotional harm.
Code of Student Conduct: Offenses Against Persons
Speech Code Category: Bullying Policies
Last updated: December 8, 2017Threats, intimidation, bullying, or coercion.
Standard Practice Guide Policies: Freedom of Speech and Artistic Expression
Speech Code Category: Advertised Commitments to Free Expression
Last updated: December 8, 2017Expression of diverse points of view is of the highest importance, not only for those who espouse a cause or position and then defend it, but also for those who hear and pass judgment on that defense. The belief that an opinion is pernicious, false, or in any other way detestable cannot be grounds for its suppression.
When a speech or some form of artistic expression such as a play or concert is prevented by disruptive protest from taking place or concluding, the effect is just as surely an attack on freedom of speech or artistic expression as the deliberate suppression or prohibition of a speaker or artist by authorities.
Code of Student Conduct: Student Rights
Speech Code Category: Advertised Commitments to Free Expression
Last updated: December 8, 2017Students at the University have the same rights and protections under the Constitutions of the United States and the State of Michigan as other citizens. These rights include freedom of expression, press, religion, and assembly. Higher education has a long tradition of student activism and values freedom of expression, which includes voicing unpopular views and dissent.
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Federal judge’s dangerous speech code ruling overshadows promising due process decision
November 27, 2018
Last week, a federal district court issued a ruling in a lawsuit brought by University of Michigan professor Pamela Smock against her institution that is notable for its sharply divided outcomes on several major civil liberties issues facing public university faculty. While the decision is promising with regard to campus due process protections, its holding on freedom of speech and academic freedom threatens faculty rights. Pamela Smock, a tenured sociology professor and demographer whose scholarship focuses on issues involving sexuality and gender, sued the University of Michigan earlier this year. Smock sued after she was disciplined for alleged misconduct specified […]
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University of Michigan Student Assembly Does the Right Thing, Scraps Proposal to Lower Standard of Evidence
December 11, 2009
Last week, I blogged about the fact that Tulane University is on the verge of lowering the standard of evidence in student disciplinary matters from one of “clear and convincing evidence” to a “preponderance of the evidence.” I discussed, as we have before on The Torch, why adopting the “preponderance” standard was a bad idea and would shortchange students’ due process rights. I was therefore dismayed to learn earlier this week that my alma mater, the University of Michigan, was contemplating adopting the same standard for its own student judiciary affairs. Thankfully, it now appears that Michigan has reversed course after some discussion and debate […]
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Debate over Offensive Letter at University of Michigan–Flint
October 18, 2007
In the latest in a series of controversies involving student newspapers, a college newspaper at the University of Michigan–Flint has come under fire because it published an offensive letter to the editor insulting the university’s Muslim community. As with the recent case at Colorado State University, the letter seems to have spurred some calls for investigation by college administrators, but most of the students in the article demonstrate an impressive understanding of the right to free speech. Interim Chancellor Jack Kay agrees with them, saying he would never advocate censorship—while exercising his right to express his own opinion about the […]
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Art and the Myth of the ‘Right Not to Be Offended’
October 21, 2005
Check out the fascinating story (“Censoring Art or Protecting Workers?”) about censored artwork in Inside Higher Ed. Apparently the University of Michigan at Flint is demanding that a graphic drawing called Hermaphrodite be removed from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Center because it is creating a “hostile environment” for workers. Anyone who pays attention to the battle for free speech on campus knows that “hostile environment” is the most abused rationale for silencing expression on campus. As I wrote in a recent column about a legal decision that threatens to badly expand what constitutes “hostile environment”: Claims of harassment […]
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