University of Pennsylvania: Proposed Reevaluation of Free Speech Commitment

On December 5, 2023, at the University of Pennsylvania President M. Elizabeth Magill’s congressional testimony about anti-Semitism on campus, she correctly stated that whether individuals calling for genocide of Jewish people violates Penn’s rules is “a context-dependent decision.” Two days later, after receiving substantial criticism for her testimony, she announced, “Penn’s policies have been guided by the Constitution and the law,” but now, “these policies need to be clarified and evaluated.” On December 7, FIRE wrote Penn calling on the university to hold fast to its laudable commitment to First Amendment standards. Penn failed to respond to our letter.