U. Louisiana Lafayette Says it’s Not Responsible for Shielding People From Ideas

U. Louisiana Lafayette Says it’s Not Responsible for Shielding People From Ideas

This is the exactly correct position for a university to hold on free speech.

Campus Reform reports:

UL Lafayette admits it shouldn’t ‘shield’ students from ‘offensive’ ideas

The University of Louisiana at Lafayette recently changed its campus free speech policy, preventing the school from regulating students who use speech protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

It is not the school’s responsibility to “shield” people from “ideas and opinions they find unwelcome, disagreeable, or even deeply offensive,” according to the new policy, reported The Vermilion.

UL also sent out an email to students obtained by Campus Reform stating that, “per federal and state laws, and in coordination with the UL System and Board of Regents, the University has updated its Policy on Campus Free Speech,” linking the policy.

This comes over a year after the student government passed a resolution to change the school’s policies over messaging or handing out material that is “distasteful or offensive.” Joseph Shamp, president of the Young Americans for Liberty at UL Lafayette, presented a list of 60 pages of students who wanted to change the policy.

In June 2018, Louisiana Democrat Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a bill requiring higher education institutions to “develop policies, regulations, and expectations of students regarding free expression and association on campus.”

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