Five California Polytechnic State University students say their free speech rights were violated after their obnoxious disruption of a university career fair was quickly silenced. The students, representing the SLO Peace Coalition, were escorted out of the room after singing “anti-war” songs in front of the defense contractor Raytheon’s booth. The students say they were protesting Raytheon’s funneling of arms to Saudi Arabia for the war on Yemen.
During their eight minutes of fame, the students sang loudly (and mercilessly off-key) with messages taped to their shirts that protested the company and its ties to Cal Poly.
The SLO Peace Coalition has made several “demands” to Cal Poly, including divesting from weapons producers like Raytheon, allowing no new sponsorships from them, and creating “infrastructures to support career paths for students who do not want to go into ‘defense’ work.”
Former Raytheon executive William Swanson donated $10 million to the university’s golf program three years ago, and $100,000 to its journalism department last year. The company has also made other generous gifts over the years, including the donation of lab equipment.
University officials said the students were in violation of the school’s Code of Conduct policies, which prohibit “demonstrations that would disrupt events that are not open to the general public.” They also noted the students were previously warned.
The students claim that the university officials found no wrongdoing when they staged a similar protest last April.
If this is true, the university became a bit bolder in six months. So what? While the protest was nonviolent, it still disrupted a campus event that was organized to help students find jobs and could jeopardize the participation of other potential employers in future career fairs.
“I think they are trying to intimidate us because Raytheon is a major donor,” said student Kelsey Zazanis, who helped lead the protest. “It’s really scary that they’re bending their code. I learned from this that they aren’t held to any standard.”
Cal Poly has vehemently denied this claim. University spokesman Matt Lazier added that the exercise of free expression shouldn’t interfere with “university functions, imperil public safety, obstruct or damage university facilities, or cause individuals to become audiences against their will.” In this case, the students had a captive audience — one that likely cared more about their job prospects after graduation than whether or not the university financially benefits from a defense contractor.
Furthermore, Cal Poly has become the standard-bearer for free speech on campus in recent years under President Jeffrey Armstrong’s leadership. When conservative speaker Milo Yiannopoulos came to campus last year, the university not only protected the Milo’s free speech rights, but also defended those of antifa and other liberal protesters who stood outside burning flags and chanting against him. Similarly, the school has allowed an animal activist group to protest against Cal Poly’s meat processing plant on several occasions for doing nothing more than processing meat.
If the students wanted to protest, they should have done it outside where they could have had an even larger audience for their pitiful vocal abilities. The university owes them no apology.
Brendan Pringle (@BrendanPringle) is writer from California. He is a National Journalism Center graduate and formerly served as a development officer for Young America’s Foundation at the Reagan Ranch.
