ACLU of Mass. urges higher ed institutions to expand free speech protections

The ACLU of Massachusetts sent a letter to all college and university presidents across the state, urging them to protect free speech on their campuses. It was written, in part, as a response to schools changing their speech policies after a year of student protests about the Israel-Hamas war.

It was also a call for universities to shore up their free speech protections before President-elect Donald Trump takes office.

“Higher education is under attack, and we’re going to see a direct attack on that,” Carol Rose, the executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, told Boston Public Radio on Tuesday.

The ACLU of Massachusetts’ recommendations for both public and private institutions are:

• Protect students’ ability to spontaneously protest in response to unanticipated events, when speech is often the most essential.
• Ensure that students have amply channels for expression on campus.
• Prohibit suspicionless identification checks of student demonstrators.

The ACLU evaluated student protest policies across different campuses, taking note of “good” and “bad” policies, and recommended steps each school could take to improve free speech protections. Rose said an example of a “bad” policy might be requiring someone to get a permit three weeks in advance of a protest, which simply isn’t possible for a protest over an issue that happened yesterday. “There have to be exceptions for things like that … for spontaneity,” she said.
Rose said the ACLU also looked at due process protections for students and faculty at private universities, who are not legally subject to the First Amendment.

“Don’t you think that students who are going to those universities have a right — just ethically and morally — to also be protected by free speech protections?” she said.

In addition to providing recommendations, Rose said the ACLU is in contact with the legal counsel at several schools.

“We’re trying to work with them to find a way to make sure that our universities aren’t under attack,” she said, adding that schools shouldn’t change speech policies out of fear of retribution by politicians. “I think it’s going to be really important that university leaders not act out of fear, but in fact, stand up courageously. Because that’s how bullies will back down.”