2008 Woodie Awards
A UNCG official responds to the recent free speech controversy
Guest Column
Checka Leinwell
Issue date: 10/23/07 Section: Opinions
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro strongly encourages free speech. A university campus is a marketplace of ideas where people should feel free to express their opinions and engage in debate. The very essence of the university is the concept that speech produces more speech and allows those engaged in the process to become critical thinkers as they work through the various issues presented to them. On the other hand, the university has the obligation to protect the rights of students to study, learn, sleep, and carry on their lives with minimal disruption. Therefore the university has policies that balance the rights of people to speak on issues of the day with others' rights not to be disturbed by amplified sound, accosted by people passing out literature, or blocked from entering or leaving buildings by people assembling for a particular cause.
The guest columns in the Oct. 16 issue of The Carolinian regarding free speech concerns appeared on the opinion pages because they were simply that: one person's opinion. Opinion stories are not required to be researched or fact checked for accuracy because they are simply an opinion. Unfortunately, these articles do not give an accurate representation of the university's policies or the Office of Campus Activities and Programs philosophies regarding students' rights to speech and assembly.
The university's policy regarding outdoor assemblies (often incorrectly referred to as the "free speech policy") may be found at its.uncg.edu/Policy_Manual/Facility_Use/. Section XI of the policy addresses outdoor assemblies. The Outdoor Assembly section of the policy was developed by a committee of faculty, staff, and students in Spring 2006. Students who sat on the committee were both graduate and undergraduate students as well as members of politically active organizations. Some of these students were also members of Student Government and drafts of the policy was circulated to Student Government and other organizations by the student representatives during the creation of the policy.
The guest columns in the Oct. 16 issue of The Carolinian regarding free speech concerns appeared on the opinion pages because they were simply that: one person's opinion. Opinion stories are not required to be researched or fact checked for accuracy because they are simply an opinion. Unfortunately, these articles do not give an accurate representation of the university's policies or the Office of Campus Activities and Programs philosophies regarding students' rights to speech and assembly.
The university's policy regarding outdoor assemblies (often incorrectly referred to as the "free speech policy") may be found at its.uncg.edu/Policy_Manual/Facility_Use/. Section XI of the policy addresses outdoor assemblies. The Outdoor Assembly section of the policy was developed by a committee of faculty, staff, and students in Spring 2006. Students who sat on the committee were both graduate and undergraduate students as well as members of politically active organizations. Some of these students were also members of Student Government and drafts of the policy was circulated to Student Government and other organizations by the student representatives during the creation of the policy.
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