The Charlotte Observer reports on the latest campus free speech legislative action in North Carolina, where the state house passed House Bill 527 by an 88-32 vote: House Bill 527, dubbed “Restore/preserve campus free speech,” is a mandate for public universities to “ensure the fullest degree of intellectual freedom and free expression.” The bill would require public universities to have a range of sanctions for protesters who disrupt events or interfere with others’ free speech rights. Universities would have to teach students about free speech policies during freshman orientation. The bill follows a series of recent national controversies in which loud and unruly protests shut down speaker
The Herald Sun reports on the latest efforts in North Carolina to restore free speech on campus: State legislators have filed two “campus free speech” bills that on their face would eventually force UNC-Chapel Hill and perhaps other campuses in the UNC system to revise some of their campus-conduct rules and procedures. The parallel measures in the N.C. House and state Senate surfaced at the end of March, and for the most part echo proposals from a national group, the Goldwater Institute, that argues the handling of speech-related issues on campuses across the country is at once too strict and too loose. As introduced, the N.C. House bill would require the system Board of Governors to prescri
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper on Tuesday signed bipartisan legislation to help restore free speech at public universities in his state. The Denver Post reports: Colorado college students won’t be restricted to a “free-speech zone,” which allows them to speak their minds just about anywhere on campus. Gov. John Hickenlooper Tuesday signed into law the abolition of free-speech zones on public college campuses. The areas have been used to confine public demonstrations to designated areas. But critics say college and universities have used free-speech zones to actually restrict the free expression of ideas by insulating students from speech they may find offensive or threatening. Supporters sa
