Free speech is indispensable to our freedom and constitutional government.
This right is absolutely guaranteed to "We the people" by the First Amendment.
It's a right that protects freedom of expression (with narrowly limited exceptions) regardless of the message, ideas, subject matter or content.
Shockingly, this fundamental right is under relentless assault by the progressive left pressing racist diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, a cancel culture focused on mandating the woke ideology and censoring countervailing views. College campuses have been overwhelmed by this ideological orthodoxy and censorship.
As emphasized by the Supreme Court, our Nation has been "deeply committed" to the "transcendent value" of "safeguarding academic freedom" and the classroom as a "market place of ideas" and free from the "pall of orthodoxy" [(Keyishian v. Board of Regents, 385 U.S. 589 (1967)].
Today, however, universities are mandating the woke, progressive ideology and DEI as dogma; suppressing political debate and academic freedom; establishing strict speech codes; restricting speech to so-called "free speech zones"; imposing punitive actions against students and professors who deviate from the mandated orthodoxy; and discriminating in student admissions and faculty hiring.
Moreover, this woke ideology is on the attack.
As shown by the recent spectacles involving federal court of appeals Judge Duncan’s attempted speech at Stanford Law School, Riley Gaines’ speech at San Francisco State University, and Charlie Kirk’s speech at the University of California, Davis, angry, violent mobs seek to intimidate, shout down, and even physically threaten conservative speakers.
Congress must starve the beast of woke ideology, intolerance, and violence on college campuses by ending federal funding for schools that fail to provide a robust, free and open marketplace of ideas.
This assault on free speech is unconscionable.
It's contrary to the fundamental principle of academic freedom that is the foundation of education. Indeed, colleges today have become the antithesis of the once revered diverse marketplace of ideas.
And worse it is funded in substantial part by the federal government through our tax dollars.
It is, in effect, government-sponsored indoctrination, censorship, and discrimination as billions of federal dollars are funneled to colleges through research grants, Pell grants, recent COVID-19 relief, and other programs.
Congress must end its sponsorship of this onslaught against academic freedom and free speech. To this end, Congress should condition federal funding on colleges committing to protect and promote free expression and academic freedom for students, faculty, and speakers; eliminating restrictive speech codes and speech zones; and ending DEI discriminatory practices in student admissions and faculty hiring.
Further, to ensure compliance, Congress should establish a federal administrative complaint process that will expeditiously review complaints and provide judicial review.
Free speech is a fundamental constitutional right and academic freedom is essential to education.
Congress must starve the beast of woke ideology, intolerance, and violence on college campuses by ending federal funding for schools that fail to provide a robust, free, and open marketplace of ideas.
(A related article may be found here.)
Michael Clancy is a lawyer, member of The Federalist Society and Heritage Foundation, and former congressional candidate. He provides incisive, analytical commentary on political and constitutional law issues; and is a frequent guest on political news programs. Mike is a graduate of The George Washington University Law School and Notre Dame. Twitter: @MikeClancyVA. Read More Mike Clancy — Here.
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