Conservative Students Sue After Being Told to Tame Criticism of Hamas, Illegal Immigration
“I left Iran to enjoy the amazing freedom that the United States offers. Now I find myself threatened with punishment for expressing political opinions”
Conservative students all over the country should do this in applicable cases. Flood the zone.
The College Fix reports:
Conservative students, told to tame their criticism of Hamas and illegal immigration, file lawsuit
A federal lawsuit has been filed against a California community college alleging administrators are infringing on conservative students’ free speech rights by telling them to tame their criticisms of hot-button topics such as Hamas and illegal immigration.
The Young America’s Foundation student activists filed the lawsuit against Golden West College, located in the Republican stronghold of Huntington Beach.
Student activists Matin Samimiat and Annaliese Hutchings allege administrators have threatened them with disciplinary actions if they continue to use extreme language to discuss controversial topics with peers.
The conflict began when Hutchings and Samimiat, an Iranian-born student, expressed controversial political opinions at Golden West’s Club Expo in late February.
Their YAF booth displayed a whiteboard that read: “CHANGE MY MIND!!! • It is a privilege to be an American and we should all be thankful for it. • Illegal immigration is a cancer upon any society in the world. • Men do not belong in women’s sports and spaces.”
In response, Samimiat received an email from College Disciplinary Officer Stephanie Smallshaw stating, “My office received several reports regarding Club Expo and some messaging on a white board at your booth. I would like to schedule a meeting so that we can discuss.”
They scheduled a meeting for March 20, and one week prior displayed a whiteboard at the “Goldchella” college preview day event with similar statements, including the phrase “Hamas is a terrorist organization, and they must be wiped from the face of the earth.”
During the meeting with Smallshaw, she allegedly threatened them with disciplinary action, claiming their statements were offensive and potentially incited harm and a call to violence.
Although Samimiat offered to adjust the language of the group’s messages without changing their views, the suit contends, Smallshaw allegedly gave no explicitly clear guidance on what speech would be acceptable.
“I left Iran to enjoy the amazing freedom that the United States offers. Now I find myself threatened with punishment for expressing political opinions—because they happen to be opinions that administrators don’t like,” Samimiat said in a statement provided to The College Fix.
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Comments
The entire “education” establishment in the United States has been corrupted – from preK through postDoc. It needs to be dismantled, scrubbed, and rebuilt from the ground up.
I think the home school movement is doing just that.
This student has a lot of testicular fortitude to express such views in CA. Much kudos to them.
Sue until their eyes bleed. Accept no settlement.
Why do colleges even have Departments of Thought Police, seeking out Wrongthink? They should be focusing on preparing young people to be productive members of society instead of parasites and activists.
The students should document things the college considers approved speech.
If there’s any student, or academic, messages saying things like America is a cancer on the world, pro-lifers are terrorists, or Zionists should be wiped from the face of the Earth, then it shows that offensive language potentially inciting harm and calling for violence is fully acceptable to the college, what is not acceptable is non-Woke language.
Correct response to alleged students who complained would be “if you don’t like what you see, put on your big girl panties and either don’t look, or take a different route. It’s a big campus.”
But that wouldn’t express an opinion, which Smallshaw couldn’t resist doing.
This what really burns most normal people about American universities. They will defend their American hating hands loving protestors to the ends of the earth even when they are screaming to kill Jews and actively blocking their educational access. But if you criticize hamas or Iran than you get censored and punished. Free speech has to go both ways including ideas that the precious little professors don’t support. These idiots just want complete control over the content , narrative and information so they can better manipulate their brainwashed useless pupils. Differently opinions are scary to them.
Wait a minute.
If Hamas supporters scream for the death of Jews or Zionists, that’s a real threat not protected by the First Amendment.
If conservatives caĺl for logically but not literally the same thing they’re exercising free speech.
WTF?