Boise State University has settled for $20,000 in a free speech lawsuit with a pro-life student group.
When the group called Abolitionists4Life held events on campus displaying images of abortions, an administrator insisted that they display signs to warn passersby of the graphic nature of the pictures.
The university also prohibited the students from distributing flyers in other areas of campus outside of a reserved speech zone.
According to the lawsuit filed against the school, the group had properly reserved a speech zone on the Central Quad for their events, but the university still required the display of warning signs because, the material being presented was “controversial” and could be considered offensive.
Students for Life of America (SFLA) and Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) filed the lawsuit last June on behalf of Abolitionists4Life.
“Pro-life students should not be discriminated against or censored because university officials do not agree with their viewpoints,” SFLA president, Kristan Hawkins, said in a statement. “Pro-life students have every right to host events on campus as do any other student. Universities are supposed to be beacons of free speech and tolerance, not discriminatory havens of censorship where the only views tolerated are those of liberal administrators.”
According to the lawsuit, Boise State has allowed other groups to host events without requiring warning signs, including Planned Parenthood, which distributed condoms on campus, and the Secular Student Alliance, which held pro-abortion and anti-religious signs outside of the designated speech zones.
In past school years, Abolitionists4Life claims that they were able to hold many expressive events on campus without being asked to display warning signs.
As a result of the lawsuit, Boise State has revised its speech policy and no longer requires student organizations to post warning signs for events that administrators consider controversial, and no longer limits the distribution of flyers to free speech zones.
As part of the new policy, the university may either require signs that read, “Public display ahead; viewer discretion advised,” in all open spaces reserved for events, or require no signs at all.
Boise State also will pay $20,000 to Abolitionists4Life — $100 for damages and the rest for legal fees, as reported by the Idaho Statesman.
“Universities cannot function as marketplaces of ideas if free speech requires a warning sign or is otherwise severely limited on campus,” said ADF Senior Legal Counsel David Hacker. “We commend Boise State University for acknowledging this by revising its speech policy so that students can speak more freely throughout campus without fear of punishment.”
