2008 Woodie Awards
Repression runs rampant in Academia
Guest Column
Lauren Guy McAlpin
Issue date: 10/16/07 Section: Opinions
On the evening of Oct. 4, the UNCG chapter of World Can't Wait had scheduled a showing of Crimes Against Humanity: The Bush Record. However, our event quickly became yet another example of the university's repressive policies on free speech and dissent on campus.
We were approved to show the documentary in the Multicultural Resource Center far in advance. But just before the event, I received an email from the MRC staff saying we could not have the event in their location because we're unaffiliated with the university. I had turned in our affiliation paperwork earlier in the semester and, having known other groups that have gone through the affiliation process rather quickly, I figured we would be "official" by the time the event was scheduled and therefore there would be no problem. That did not happen with us.
Not letting the bureaucracy get in the way of an event we've spent a lot of time building for, we moved it to the EUC T.V. lounge for anyone that wanted to stay and have an informal, unofficial showing instead. No one was in the T.V. lounge, so no problem, right? Wrong.
We hadn't gotten 10 minutes into it when an OSL person came down and said we couldn't have a meeting in the public lounge. She said we'd have to leave, that this was a public lounge, and could not be occupied by a group. We argued with her and she left; five minutes later, the police showed up and kicked us out. So we left, unable to be in the MRC because we're not a group, then kicked out of the T.V. lounge for being a group.
A few of us went upstairs to ask the OSL staff some questions. A manager of the OSL told us the reason we could not show this DVD in the lounge was because of its "purpose," because it was a political documentary. Free speech, he explained, does not exist inside the EUC, only within 30 feet of any university building. When I got cocky and asked him if me and five friends could, by that logic, watch Bill O'Reilly in the TV lounge, he told me to "get out of his face" before he had me removed from the building.
We were approved to show the documentary in the Multicultural Resource Center far in advance. But just before the event, I received an email from the MRC staff saying we could not have the event in their location because we're unaffiliated with the university. I had turned in our affiliation paperwork earlier in the semester and, having known other groups that have gone through the affiliation process rather quickly, I figured we would be "official" by the time the event was scheduled and therefore there would be no problem. That did not happen with us.
Not letting the bureaucracy get in the way of an event we've spent a lot of time building for, we moved it to the EUC T.V. lounge for anyone that wanted to stay and have an informal, unofficial showing instead. No one was in the T.V. lounge, so no problem, right? Wrong.
We hadn't gotten 10 minutes into it when an OSL person came down and said we couldn't have a meeting in the public lounge. She said we'd have to leave, that this was a public lounge, and could not be occupied by a group. We argued with her and she left; five minutes later, the police showed up and kicked us out. So we left, unable to be in the MRC because we're not a group, then kicked out of the T.V. lounge for being a group.
A few of us went upstairs to ask the OSL staff some questions. A manager of the OSL told us the reason we could not show this DVD in the lounge was because of its "purpose," because it was a political documentary. Free speech, he explained, does not exist inside the EUC, only within 30 feet of any university building. When I got cocky and asked him if me and five friends could, by that logic, watch Bill O'Reilly in the TV lounge, he told me to "get out of his face" before he had me removed from the building.
Viewing Comments 1 - 4 of 5
Sam Sullivan
posted 10/20/07 @ 2:29 PM EST
As a member of The World Cant Wait and a few other political groups the repression from the administration I have witnessed has been blatant and unignorable. (Continued…)
Zach Huffman
posted 10/22/07 @ 9:26 AM EST
Yes, it's tragic that Democrats and other liberal groups are so under represented on college capuses.
Alex
posted 11/01/07 @ 3:09 PM EST
UNCG's free speech policies as strict, don't get me wrong. But you are wrong if you think that liberals are the only ones being repressed by the administration. (Continued…)
Alex
Alwx
posted 11/01/07 @ 3:12 PM EST
UNCG's free speech policies as strict, don't get me wrong. But you are wrong if you think that liberals are the only ones being repressed by the administration. (Continued…)
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