I never cease to be amazed at the
left-wing politically correct authoritarianism and animosity toward civil
rights that exists at many public colleges
and universities. That authoritarianism
is clear in the case of Second Amendment rights and First Amendment rights.
(see post below). In terms of numbers of
students, those campuses outnumber those with right-wing authoritarianism. Most of the latter are private or religious
schools. Private and religious schools
are not covered by the First Amendment.
The left-wing authoritarians believe that
the campus is entitled only a watered-down politically correct version of the
First Amendment and Second Amendments.
Below is an example of the position of a left-wing academician on the
First Amendment. Their obsession with ‘safe
space’ and ‘’microaggression’ overrides the First Amendment rights of others.
(The Supreme Court has long held that even hate speech is protected, bold added
below):
“This past week, the news media has
energetically discussed student unrest at Yale and at the University of
Missouri, where students are protesting administrative insensitivity or
inaction in the face of troubled racial climates. At Mizzou, in particular, student
activists have demanded safe space. A student journalist, Tim Tai, was denied access to the protesters’ tent city in a
public area of the campus. The protesters didn’t want to be photographed or
interviewed, possibly not trusting journalists to tell their story accurately.
The next day, they rightly changed their
stance, opened their space to the media, and a debate on free speech and safe
spaces found new life. Quickly, the student protesters were accused of not
tolerating free speech in regard not only to Mr. Tai, but also to those who use
racial epithets and otherwise engage in hate speech. They were accused of being
weak, of being whiny for having the audacity to expect to attend college
without being harassed for their blackness.
As a writer, I believe the First Amendment
is sacred. The freedom of speech, however, does not guarantee freedom from
consequence. You can speak your mind, but you can also be shunned. You can be
criticized. You can be ignored or ridiculed. You can lose your job. The freedom
of speech does not exist in a vacuum.
Many of the people who advocate for freedom of speech with the most bluster
are willing to waste this powerful right on hate speech.”
What the writer ignores is that if one can show that a
public college or university fires and employee or disciplines a student for
engaging in protected speech, the institution may be liable for damages and
injnctions for civil rights violation. It
is disturbing to see how many faculty and journalists lack the courage to speak
up when politically incorrect speech is denied constitutional respect in public
facilities. Finally, there is no such
thing as a ‘waste’ or First Amendment rights.
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