Censored at DePaul
FIRE Takes an Inside Look at What Might Be America’s Worst School for Free Speech
DePaul University has repressed speech on campus for more than a decade. Last spring, a rash of troubling incidents brought the school back on our radar and has us asking — once again — whether DePaul will ever fulfill its promises to uphold free speech principles.
DePaul, a private
university in Chicago,
promises its students the
right to free speech.
DePaul is committed to fostering a community that welcomes open discourse. We believe that intellectual inquiry is enriched immeasurably by robust debate and exposure to differing points of view. By remaining open to a broad range of ideas and opinions, we foster mutual understanding, test our beliefs, and create the most effective conditions for seeking knowledge.
[...]
DePaul affirms the right of speakers to voice their viewpoints,
even at the risk of controversy.
—DePaul University Guiding Principles on Speech and Expression
But last spring, a spate of censorship incidents hit DePaul student groups of various ideologies.
In April 2016, students at DePaul University chalked pro-Trump messages on campus.
In response to DePaul censoring the chalk messages, the College Republicans invited former Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos to speak on campus.
Since 2005, the university has failed to practice what it preaches.
DePaul welcomes speakers of a wide variety of positions on a wide variety of topics every year. The university is committed to working with any student group in bringing speakers to campus.
—Dennis H. Holtschneider, president of DePaul University, 2005
In June 2016, DePaul prohibited Young Americans for Freedom from inviting conservative journalist Ben Shapiro to campus.
DePaul charging arbitrary security fees for hosting speakers on campus hasn’t been cabined to conservative viewpoints.
Unfortunately, DePaul’s treatment of student groups over this past year is part of a long—and troubling—tradition of censorship at the university.
FIRE stands ready to protect free speech on
America’s college campuses.
Contact DePaul University and urge them to fulfill the promises of free speech that they make to students: DePaulPresidentsOffice@depaul.edu
If you believe your college or university stifled your protected expression,
submit your case to FIRE.
