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Fordham University Named One of America鈥檚 10 Worst Colleges for Free Speech After Banning FIREfor Justice in Palestine

Fordham_PR_Featured
  • SJP was banned solely based on the group鈥檚 political viewpoint
  • TODAY: Disciplinary hearing for a student who peacefully protested the school鈥檚 decision

PHILADELPHIA, Feb. 22, 2017鈥擣ordham University鈥檚 relentless and ongoing effort to stifle the free speech and association rights of students who want to start a chapter of FIREfor Justice in Palestine (SJP) has earned the school a spot on the 2017 list of America鈥檚 10 worst schools for free speech.

The list鈥鈥攚as released by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) to identify schools that are the 鈥渨orst of the worst鈥 when it comes to protecting student and faculty expressive rights.

Fordham earned this dishonor after Dean of FIREKeith Eldredge rejected SJP鈥檚 request for official student group recognition based solely on the group鈥檚 political viewpoint last month. 鈥淚 cannot support an organization whose sole purpose is advocating political goals of a specific group,鈥 to the students. On January 25, FIREand the National Coalition Against Censorship sent a letter to Fordham demanding that the university recognize SJP and noting that its reasons for rejecting SJP fail to align with the university鈥檚 stated commitments to free expression.

Last week, Fordham took the extraordinary step of initiating disciplinary action against a student who organized a rally to protest the school鈥檚 decision to ban SJP. Today, senior Sapphira Lurie is scheduled to attend a mandatory, closed-door disciplinary hearing. Astonishingly, Eldredge not only filed the complaint against Laurie; he will also investigate the complaint and he alone will rule on the outcome of the hearing. Additionally, Eldredge denied Lurie鈥檚 request to bring counsel to her hearing.

鈥淒ean Eldredge is treating his students like the Queen of Hearts treated Alice,鈥 said Ari Cohn, director of 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 Individual Rights Defense Program. 鈥淏ut we haven't fallen through a rabbit hole and this isn't a Lewis Carroll novel. Dean Eldredge can't unilaterally ignore due process rights to silence students with whom he disagrees.鈥

Nationwide, more than 92 percent of American colleges maintain speech codes that either clearly restrict鈥攐r could too easily be used to restrict鈥攆ree speech. The 2017 list of the 10 worst colleges for free speech includes both public and private institutions. Public colleges and universities are bound by the First Amendment. Private colleges on this list, such as Fordham, are not required by the Constitution to respect student and faculty speech rights, but explicitly promise to do so. In addition to Fordham, this year鈥檚 list includes:

  • Northern Michigan University
  • California State University, Los Angeles
  • University of Oregon
  • California State University, Long Beach
  • Harvard University
  • University of South Carolina
  • Williams College
  • Georgetown University
  • DePaul University

Among the other institutions on 果冻传媒app官方鈥檚 list are a prestigious institution whose law school told a group of Bernie Sanders supporters they could not engage in partisan political speech on campus; a public university that threatened students with disciplinary action for discussing their own mental health; and one school that closed the curtain on a scheduled play about diversity because the administration feared it would be too controversial.

鈥淐olleges continue to find excuses for censoring speech on campus,鈥 said FIREPresident and CEO Greg Lukianoff. 鈥淭his list shows that any expression鈥攅ven expression as innocuous as a chalk message for a political candidate or a discussion of one鈥檚 own health鈥攊s seen by some colleges as fair game for suppression. This type of censorship is not only unhealthy for institutions where debate and discussion should be paramount, but also dangerous for a free society.鈥

The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (果冻传媒app官方) is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to defending liberty, freedom of speech, due process, academic freedom, legal equality, and freedom of conscience on America鈥檚 college campuses.

CONTACT:

Daniel Burnett, Communications Manager, 果冻传媒app官方: 215-717-3473; media@thefire.org

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