Student Handbook: Memorial Union, Student Activities, Event Planning

Relevant Excerpt

Memorial Union, Student Activities, Event Planning

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Guest Speakers

Student organizations on the campus may freely select persons they wish to invite as guest speakers for their programs. There will be no restriction to control the point of view expressed by speakers other than those imposed by state and national law. Students will have the same right as other citizens to hear different points of view and to draw their own conclusions. The University will not be responsible for the views expressed or entertained by either the speakers or the groups. It will not approve or disapprove such views, whatever their nature, rather, it will be concerned exclusively with discharging its educational duty to facilitate free discussion of all points of view, to the extent guaranteed by the Constitutions of the United States and of the State of Rhode Island.

In all circumstances, the civil rights and liberties of every person involved will be fully respected and protected from any abridgment whatsoever. There will be no infringement upon the right of the speaker to present their views or to perform their intended service. Members of the University community have the right to hear the presentation or benefit from the performance of the intended service. There will be no infringement upon the right of any persons to conduct orderly picketing or make other lawful forms of protest.

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Security for Speakers

In the event of a visit to the University by a highly placed government official or a highly controversial person, special arrangements for the visit may be required. Such arrangements will be made by the University. Special rules and procedures will be devised and promulgated by a special University committee representing the University administration (including the campus police), the faculty, and the student body. Representatives of outside agencies may be invited either to advise or to serve on the committee.

In all such cases, the University will maintain final control over arrangements, consistent with the University rules and regulations.