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Florida Bans So-Called Campus ‘Free Speech Zones’

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(DCNF) Republican Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed a bill Sunday eliminating “free speech zones,” which are known for restricting free speech on campuses to a certain location.

SB 4, which also enables students to levy state lawsuits against public universities that violate students’ rights to expression, cleared the Florida Senate in a 33-5 vote after passing the state House in an 84-28 vote, reported the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), a free speech nonprofit group.

“Students at public colleges and universities in Florida should not have their free speech quarantined by overly restrictive policies,” FIRE legislative and policy director Joe Cohn said in a press release. “Now that Florida’s Campus Free Expression Act is law, these egregious policies of censorship must be rescinded immediately.”

Florida is the ninth state to ban “free speech zones” and FIRE’s executive director Robert Shibley mentioned in a press release his hope that the U.S. would proceed with a nationwide ban on the policies restricting student speech.

FIRE has cataloged how friendly 13 Florida universities are to free speech, judging them with a colored system in which a green light signifies a full embrace of free speech and a red light indicates significant resistance in terms of policies. The nonprofit rates the University of Florida and the University of North Florida with green lights, the University of Miami and Florida State University with red lights, and the remaining seven schools with yellow lights.

“Today is a huge victory for current and future college students across the Sunshine State who will no longer be discouraged from fully expressing their ideas and beliefs,” Demetrius Minor, Florida’s coalitions director for center-right young adult advocacy group Generation Opportunity, said in a press release. “We thank Governor Scott, as well as Speaker Corcoran, Senate President Negron, Rep. Rommel, Sen. Baxley and others who fought hard to ensure that Orwellian “free speech zones” are a thing of the past in Florida.”

Written by: Rob Shimshock
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This article was republished with permission from the Daily Caller News Foundation.

Activism, Education, Featured, US

Libertarian Student Sues USC Following ‘Free Speech Zone’ Demonstration

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As previously reported by Truth In Media’s Rachel Blevins, universities in the United States are designating “Free Speech Zones” that restrict the 1st Amendment rights of students.

In 2014, Blevins described these “Free Speech Zones” as a “designated space on campus where students can set up booths, hand out pamphlets, and host speeches concerning the things they are passionate about.”

Universities across the nation are apparently continuing to infringe on students’ 1st Amendment rights.

According to the The State newspaper, libertarian activist and University of South Carolina (USC) student Ross Abbott sued the university, claiming that the college threatened to discipline him for displaying posters on campus.

Last fall, Abbott’s student organization held a campus event which reportedly highlighted examples of censorship at various campuses. The event displayed posters that exposed 1st Amendment restrictions occurring on campuses across the United States. Despite holding the event in a designated “free speech zone,” some people complained that the posters were “offensive” and “triggering,” according to TheFire.org.

The complaints triggered a response from USC and Abbott was served with a “Notice of Charge,” an investigation was launched, and he was allegedly threatened with expulsion.

Abbot filed the lawsuit on Tuesday to preserve the rights of students to engage in freedom of expression.

Abbott told Truth In Media’s Joshua Cook, “Last I checked, the entire United States was supposed to be a ‘free speech zone.’ Trying to limit student speech to a small area of campus, especially at a public school such as ours, is not only impractical but immoral.”

“The University of South Carolina is so intolerant of free speech that students can’t even talk about free speech,” said Catherine Sevcenko, FIRE’s litigation director. “Ironically, the university’s current marketing campaign features the slogan ‘No Limits.’ But as Ross and his fellow students learned, that does not extend to their free speech rights.”

Cook asked Abbott about the reaction he’s received since he filed the lawsuit. “So far I’ve heard nothing but positive things from my peers. Even some friends from High School who I haven’t heard from in years have reached out to express their support,” said Abbott.

Abbott joins many other students who are fighting to have their voices heard on university campuses. For more information please visit the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education here to see other cases.

The lawsuit can be seen below:

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