Regulations can stifle flow of ideas
Protests should be peaceful, but need to be heard
COMMENTARY
Jeff Brubaker

Recent events have led to a flurry of ideas and a flood of opinions, but how are those words channeled at TCU? What few students realize is that a strict set of guidelines govern how free speech is dealt with at this school, and that these guidelines are part of a growing trend at universities across the country.

Among these are very some acceptable and needed regulations — demonstrators must not incite violence and demonstrations must not violate the rights of others. But, several areas are vague and even unwarranted.

One policy, which is not even cited in the Demonstration Guidelines section of the Student Handbook, is that all protests and demonstrations are to be held at Frog Fountain. While it can be argued that this is a high traffic area, the constraints on this space are significant. For example, should a group of students become disgruntled by something published in the Skiff and wish to voice their discontent they would not be allowed to hold that demonstration in front of Moudy, where the Skiff offices are located, but would be censured off to the other side of campus.

Suzy Adams, associate vice chancellor for student affairs and dean of Campus Life, said she agrees with many students that a current guideline requiring all demonstrations to be approved seven days prior to the event must be suspended, pointing to sudden developments around the world that usually call for quick action.

However, she said, the location for demonstrations needs to stay the same, saying that respect for all students is the determining factor in the administration’s policies.

Respect for all students and their opinion is certainly a praiseworthy goal, but there are those who find such limitations damaging to their message. Some demonstrations are meant to provoke or even offend the observer in order to spark discussion or thought.

Many protests depend on a good location where those who pass by are forced to see them, and while many students do walk around Frog Fountain, it is much too easy to look away and ignore anything happening there.

In fact, many people are offended at the very thought of regulating free speech, even at a private school such as this. It can be seen as an intrusion on our civil rights. Yet, such regulations have spread to public and private universities all over the nation. The University of California Berkeley, a champion of free speech among universities, has a designated free speech area of its own. Other schools censor their students when they post leaflets advertising the administration’s payrolls as a way of protesting rising tuition payments.

Despite these alarming encroachments on free speech, more and more people find such liberties as an increasingly unimportant aspect to our modern culture. A survey done in late 2002 revealed that almost 50 percent of Americans saw the First Amendment as an obstacle in America’s war on terrorism and 25 percent saw free speech as nonessential.

Regardless of our opinion, how we approach free speech here at TCU will have a direct effect on how we regard it in the wider world. We must hold fast to our constitutional rights and never take them for granted.

A most astounding and uncommon image of free speech was seen earlier this week when Frogs for Freedom, a pro-American group and TCU Peace Action, an anti-war organization, met in the same place, voiced different opinions and actually discussed the issues. More than anything, scenes like this one, despite all the regulations and guidelines, will help produce ethical and responsible leaders.

Jeff Brubaker is a junior history major from Weslaco. He can be reached at (j.d.brubaker@tcu.edu).