Towson University, a public university within Towson, Md., currently holds a yellow free speech rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.
This color rating system is used by the organization to illuminate the limits each university imposes on their students’ freedom of speech. Green means a college has no policy that directly inhibits free speech. Yellow means a college either uses an ambiguous policy that can be interpreted in such a way as to limit free speech or has a policy that directly imposes a more limited amount of protected expression. Red means a college makes use of at least one policy that does directly limit a student’s right to freedom of speech.
Towson University’s yellow rating indicates that students should be aware the college has multiple concerning policies. One such policy is 06-04.11 — Policy on Time, Place, and Manner. This policy states, “Students, Student Groups, faculty or staff planning Expressive Activity must contact the following offices in advance of any planned Expressive Activity: the Office of Campus Life (Students and Student groups); the Office of the Provost (faculty); and the Office of the Vice President for Administration and Finance (staff).”
This policy forces students to go through a tangled web of bureaucracy in order to receive approval for any sort of demonstration or event on campus. At any step in the process, any of these three offices could shut down a potential event with one simple rejection. Even if the students receive an affirmative answer from two of the offices, the third one can shut them down. Going through the process of gaining approval from three different offices is itself extraneous and is likely designed to frustrate students into giving up should any potential demonstration be deemed “controversial” by college administrators.
The college makes use of various other ambiguous policies that can be bent in such a way as to fit the needs of college demonstrators. Towson’s prohibited conduct policy in the Code of Student Conduct states that “[a]buse of any person; this includes verbal, written, electronic, or telephone abuse” is banned. The policy is so vague and nonspecific it can be applied to almost any situation depending on the whims of administrative staff.
Towson University initially responded to the Washington Examiner, but later ceased to answer questions concerning the abovementioned policies and did not respond to repeated emails asking for further clarification.
“This is exactly the kind of situation that warrants highlighting,” said Young Americans for Liberty Director of Free Speech, Alexander Staudt. “The administration is hiding behind vague policies that give them the authority to shut down students’ First Amendment rights.”
Nicholas Assi is a student at McDaniel College. He is a Maryland recruitment director and media ambassador for Young Americans for Liberty.
