About Free Speech
DRAFT
Higher education institutions have historically served as free speech sites where communities debate.
Though challenging, we continue—and will continue—to embrace this responsibility, constantly working to foster a safe environment where the free exchange of ideas and concepts can occur.
To achieve this, we have:
- Adopted a set of principles
- Reviewed legal elements of the First Amendment
- Considered free speech and its relationship to academic freedom.
We consider our position and thoughts on free speech as dynamic and subject to evolution.
Adopted Principles
We have adopted these key concepts in determining our approach and response.
- Seattle Colleges supports free speech.
- Peaceful, lawful protests are a form of free speech protected by the First Amendment and are vital to public discourse.
- Students and employees maintain their First Amendment rights within a school's jurisdiction, while officials retain authority to maintain a safe and effective environment.
- The expression of free speech must follow the law and college policies.
- The expression of free speech must not disrupt another’s right to pursue their education.
The First Amendment
The First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
Resources:
- The official website of the U.S. Congress offers Constitution Annotated, a website that provides analysis and interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. On that website, the First Amendment is fully explained.
- The Federal Judiciary offers a resource site, What Does Free Speech Mean? The site details what rights are and are not included in freedom of speech. This resource was created by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts for use in educational activities.
Freedom of Speech vs. Academic Freedom
The purpose of a university is to discern which ideas matter and should be taught—and which ones shouldn’t—to distinguish between high-value and low-value speech to demonstrate disciplinary competence.
There is a difference between free speech and academic freedom.
- Free speech is a limit on what the government can restrict.
- Academic freedom is what a university must protect while considering facts and evidence to provide the best learning environment and information to students.
To exercise critical judgment as they are obligated to do for students, universities must be intellectually autonomous from the state, and faculty members intellectually autonomous from university administrations, trustees, and donors.
Source: Loretta Ross, Associate Professor, Smith College
Where We Stand in Regard to Free Speech
We recognize that our care of free speech spaces, our students, and our community have become increasingly complex, and this is threatening the fabric of connection, learning, and education we are attempting to weave.
It is in this spirit that we created this Free Speech website to inform and educate our community about everyone's right and responsibility in regard to free speech. Here you'll find information about our policies, local, state, and federal laws regarding free speech, ways to practice free speech on our campuses, who to contact for more information.
You're also invited to visit our “Where We Stand” website. This website offers our positions on current issues, such our support for Jewish, Muslim, and LGBTQIA communities. Collectively, these websites aggregate our values, positions, procedures, and processes related to free speech.
Additional Reference: