Virginia State University, a public land grant university located in Petersburg, Va., holds a red light speech code rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education’s campus free speech rating system.
A red light rating occurs when an institution has “at least one policy that both clearly and substantially restricts freedom of speech.”
Virginia State University’s policy concerning rallies, public assemblies, and demonstrations states that only organizations which are registered by the university are permitted to hold demonstrations on campus. Additionally, organizations that wish to hold demonstrations must have written approval from both the Department of Student Activities and the Campus Police Department. In other words, only student groups and topics that have made it through the administrative filter are free to demonstrate.
Organizations that hold viewpoints with which the administration does not agree could be denied a platform due to the ambiguity. The policy ensures that only groups, issues, and perspectives that have been screened and deemed acceptable will be given a voice.
The most restrictive element of this policy is the “Application for Demonstrations and Assemblies” in which student groups must file intent to demonstrate at least 10 days before the event is to be held. This severely inhibits the ability of students to speak on breaking news or issues of immediate concern. These types of policies are not only inconvenient for spontaneous speech but are also direct violations of the First Amendment. The University of Massachusetts Amherst was sued over placing explicit restrictions on students’ speech.
A Virginia State spokesperson declined to comment on their policy.
“With each campus speech code I learn about, I am becoming increasingly skeptical as to the logic behind them,” Young Americans for Liberty Director of Free Speech Alex Staudt told Red Alert Politics. “In what universe is the administration of a public taxpayer-funded university able to create rules that supersede the Constitution?”
