A student group at the University of Minnesota is suing the school over its use of fees to fund certain organizations on campus.
The group, Viewpoint Neutrality Now!, argued in the Monday lawsuit that the school unconstitutionally uses student fees to “provide preferential treatment” to nine cultural organizations that receive free campus lounge space, according to the Star Tribune.
The nine groups include the Black Student Union, the La Raza Student Cultural Center, the Disabled Student Cultural Center, the Feminist Student Activist Collective, the Queer Student Cultural Center, the Asian-American Student Union, the Minnesota International Student Association, the American Indian Student Cultural Center, and the Al-Madinah Cultural Center.
Attendants of the university pay about $900 per year in service fees that fund healthcare services, recreation center dues, and other organizations such as student unions and groups. The lawsuit filed by Viewpoint Neutrality Now! said the leases for the lounge spaces occupying these student groups are worth about $30,000 per year. Student groups can apply for funding under guidelines meant to be viewpoint neutral.
Erik Kaardal, the attorney representing the case, says the students feel the funding of certain groups violates the First Amendment. The lawsuit was filed in a U.S. district court last week.
“The University of Minnesota has created a student-services-fee-funded shrine on the second floor of Coffman Memorial Union to worship the great god of political correctness,” Kaardal told the Star Tribune. “In order to do so, the university trashes the First Amendment. The public expects the university to take care of and educate its students, not to abuse their student services fees.”
The lawsuit also opposes the funding of campus media groups, which go through a different application process from other groups and are eligible for more funding.
The Minnesota Daily, the campus newspaper at the school, received $512,400 in 2018-2019. College radio station KUOM received $314,400, while student groups that are not designated media can only receive up to $55,000 per year.
