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FIRE Update
July 2, 2009
This Saturday, Americans will celebrate the 223rd anniversary of our nation's declaration of independence. One day after the Fourth's fireworks, Sergeant Christian DeJohn of Wyncote, Pennsylvania, will be deploying to Fort Irwin, California, right smack in the middle of the Mojave Desert. DeJohn is used to enduring hardships for the constitutional freedoms of himself and others. As FIRE supporters no doubt recall, DeJohn brought a successful suit against Temple University, where he was and is still a graduate student, which resulted in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit striking down Temple's former sexual harassment policy on First Amendment grounds last fall. Unfortunately, DeJohn's "reward" for his victory has been bitter indeed. Despite obtaining each of the 26 credits necessary for his master's degree and maintaining a GPA of 3.2, Temple's History Department has refused to grant DeJohn an honest review of his master's thesis. The provost's office is currently reviewing his situation.
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Read More About Temple University: Speech Code Litigation » The Torch
July 2, 2009
If you click on TheFIRE.org this Monday morning and find that the layout and navigation you've come to recognize have changed, worry not! We've been working hard for over six months to design and develop a new online look for FIRE, and we hope that the result increases functionality while displaying news and issues in a way that's interactive and educational. Help get the word out about FIRE's website by posting a link to the newly designed TheFIRE.org using your Twitter, Facebook, or MySpace account.
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June 29, 2009
In a setback for religious liberty and freedom of association on campus, the Supreme Court of the United States today declined to hear an appeal of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit's ruling in Truth v. Kent. The Supreme Court's decision not to hear the appeal means that the Ninth Circuit's deeply flawed ruling in Truth will stand. As a result, the rights of student groups at public campuses in Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, and Washington to define themselves in accordance with their shared beliefs may be threatened. FIRE submitted a friend-of-the-court brief in late April urging the Court to hear the appeal.
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June 26, 2009
The Second Annual Campus Freedom Network Conference took place June 18–20 and was a smashing success. Fifty-one students from across the country gathered in Philadelphia for two days of lectures, panels, and workshops on all aspects of free speech on campus. Students heard from prominent First Amendment experts on a wide range of topics, giving students a firm foundation for understanding the origins of their rights, the practical effects of having rights, and how students can defend their rights on campus. These 51 students are now prepared to return to their campuses and reform them for liberty. See photos from this year's conference on the CFN website.
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June 24, 2009
University of California-Santa Barbara (UCSB) has just notified Professor William Robinson that it is no longer pursuing charges against him for sending an e-mail to his Sociology of Globalization class which offended students and critics both within and outside the university. Exactly two weeks after FIRE wrote UCSB Chancellor Henry Yang, the university's Charges Committee reported that it "did not find probable cause to undertake disciplinary action." Executive Vice Chancellor Gene Lucas informed Robinson that "this matter is now terminated." This is a victory for all faculty members at UCSB, who now are less likely to self-censor in fear that complaints about their relevant class communications might be transformed into unconstitutional months-long investigations.
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Update: June 25, 2009, Read More About University of California at Santa Barbara: Professor Investigated for Sending E-Mail to Class » Press Release
Christian Group Regains Recognition
June 22, 2009
After banning a Christian student organization from meeting on campus, Wright State University has reversed course and granted recognition to the Campus Bible Fellowship (CBF) for the 2009–2010 academic year. Despite the group's 30-year history as a registered student organization, Wright State withdrew recognition from the Campus Bible Fellowship in January after the group refused to eliminate faith-based standards for its voting members. Under pressure from FIRE, religious liberty has been restored on Wright State's campus.
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Update: June 25, 2009, Read More About Wright State University: Christian Group Banned from Campus » Press Release
June 11, 2009
Student rights are under assault at Bucknell University, where a conservative student group's protests against affirmative action policies and President Obama's stimulus plan have repeatedly been shut down or forbidden by administrators using flimsy or patently false excuses. After the Bucknell University Conservatives Club (BUCC) had three events censored in two months, the students turned to FIRE for help.
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Update: June 30, 2009, Read More About Bucknell University: University Slams Door on Student Satires of Obama Stimulus Plan and Affirmative Action » Press Release
June 9, 2009
FIRE is pleased to announce the release of a new video on DVD and online called "Threats, Coercion, and Bullying at Missouri State." The short documentary covers FIRE's case at Missouri State University (MSU), where social work student Emily Brooker was threatened with expulsion after she refused (as a matter of personal belief) to send a signed letter to the Missouri state legislature in favor of homosexual foster parenting and adoption. FIRE also is pleased to announce the winners of its "Freedom on Campus" student video contest. A grand prize of $5,000 and an invitation to the Campus Freedom Network's summer conference went to a group of students from Ohio University (OU) for their video, "That's What She Said." Robert Nyerges, Dan Ray, Evan Mitchell, and Aaron Karp produced and filmed a documentary on OU's sexual harassment policy, describing how the policy likely violates the First Amendment.
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June 4, 2009
FIRE announces its Speech Code of the Month for June 2009: New York University. NYU’s Anti-Harassment Policy explicitly prohibits “insulting,” “teasing,” and even “inappropriate jokes” when they are based on a legally protected status such as race, gender, or religion. This prohibition of protected speech is a clear violation of NYU’s policy stating that “Free inquiry, free expression, and free association are indispensable to the purposes of the University, and must be protected as a matter of academic freedom within the University….” How is free expression possible when students face punishment for any speech perceived by another as insulting, degrading, or even merely inappropriate? There are many important conversations to be had on matters such as race, religion and gender that will likely—in a truly open debate—lead to feelings of insult or hurt. By subjecting students engaging in this type of unfettered free expression to punishment, NYU is simply shutting down whole avenues of discussion.
Read Full Article » Press Release
June 2, 2009
A student who wants to form a gun-rights group will still be subject to unconstitutional censorship, the Community College of Allegheny County (CCAC) announced yesterday. Christine Brashier, who wants to form a chapter of Students for Concealed Carry on Campus (SCCC), was told through a letter to FIRE yesterday that she will not be punished for her efforts to organize the group, as college officials had threatened in an earlier meeting, but only if she follows CCAC's unconstitutional policies. She must have all of her pamphlets approved before distribution and will not be allowed to use the name of CCAC in any way during her effort to start a group at the college.
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Update: June 7, 2009, Read More About Community College of Allegheny County: Student Denied Right to Start Advocacy Organization » |
