Posted on 10/02/2023 6:01:17 AM PDT by MtnClimber
A new lawsuit before the Supreme Court could set the precedent on whether or not various “speech police” efforts on college campuses are constitutional.
As the Daily Caller reports, numerous so-called “bias response teams” have been created at colleges across the country, serving the purpose of monitoring speech on campus for any “offensive” remarks, and subsequently taking action against those who make such remarks. These efforts overwhelmingly and disproportionately impact conservative students rather than left-wing students, with the latter often being the ones to report the former to campus authorities.
Now, an amicus brief has been filed before the Supreme Court by the Alumni Free Speech Alliance, a coalition of over a dozen pro-free speech groups focused on higher education. The brief was filed in support of the group Speech First, which has filed a lawsuit against Virginia Tech over its own bias response team.
“In history, it’s always repressive regimes that pick a scapegoat and sometimes not even with aforethought. It just happens they rile up the crowds against them. And that’s what these bias systems are used for,” said Chuck Davis, president of the Alumni Free Speech Alliance.
“The goal of these teams is censorship,” said Zach Greenberg, a spokesman for the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), formerly the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. “These bias response teams have been used to report on group chats and even by third parties walking by on campus.”
In the most recent ruling on Speech First’s lawsuit against Virginia Tech, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals declared that the university’s bias response team was not unconstitutional, as the entity itself did not actually punish students. However, such offices can often make references to more decisive authorities at the university, who can subsequently issue punishments for speech.
“Being investigated is the punishment,” said Eric Rasmusen, a former economics professor at UCLA and member of the MIT Free Speech Alliance.
This should be an easy one.
If we loose this one, its time to start thinking of leaving the USA.
This started around 2000 as conservative professors were telling me they were being forced out.
Most are gone now.
Then in 2003, it moved to High Tech.
I was nearly fired for expressing my opinion about H1b.
Many others were not so lucky.
We survived by NOT talking about ANYTHING but work.
While liberals and the Crazy could talk and do anything.
Now it is everywhere and its going to get much worse if something isn’t done.
Why not import some Shira Police from Iran?
Get ready for the old “They’re a private entity, and can set their own rules on speech”, just like the “Twitter can set their own rules on speech” crapola.
Why would people want to contribute to that mess?
If it’s a private college that takes no federal student loans dollars? Then perhaps yes.
All “campii speech police” need to be locked up at Gitmo and waterboarded every day for the rest of their lives for violating the American Bill of Rights.
Do you know what they are doing to our country and freedoms?
My new dentist came to America with his parents, from Cambodia, at age 8. He knows exactly what is happening to this country!
Will we all know and recognize it when it’s too late? BEFORE it’s too late?
Don’t get your hopes up....
“The First Amendment protects this right by prohibiting Congress from making laws that would curtail freedom of speech.”
Key word is Congress. If the SCOTUS say yes to speech police, then every institution or even business can follow.
Be a decision to watch for
no need apparently
Because they are naive. Because they are fools.
Colleges and Universities should be a way to gain training for a job. Nothing more. And if there are no jobs in the field that you are training for, example: gender studies, find something else to do. Otherwise it is a complete waste of money. Wait, it is a complete waste of “other people’s money” because you expect a bail out from Uncle Joe.
Supreme Court Could Soon Make Decision on Legality of Campus Speech Police.
Keep reading that until the knowledge of what is happening to the Constitution sinks in.
2020 = 1984
Congress is funding every university by guaranteeing student loans, providing grant money to various departments etc....
If the university bans free speech it is acting as an agent of Congress in doing so.
good point, but that doesn’t mean they won’t anyway. Remember there are 2 sets of rules
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