The Little Brown Reader

Cal Poly Student Punished for Posting Flier

Cal Poly Student Punished for Posting Flier

Public University Gives Heckler's Veto to Students Who Claim "Offense"

SAN LUIS OBISPO, CA--In the spring of 2003, a student at the California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly) was found guilty of “disruption� for posting a flier—in a public area—that some students found “offensive.� The public university placed unequal rights above the Bill of Rights. “Allowing some individuals to veto the protected expression of others is an unconscionable betrayal of Cal Poly’s moral and legal obligations,� said Thor L. Halvorssen, CEO of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE).

On November 12, 2002, Steve Hinkle, an undergraduate and a member of the Cal Poly College Republicans (CPCR), posted fliers advertising a speech by Mason Weaver, author of It’s OK to Leave the Plantation. In that book, Weaver argues that dependence on the government puts many African-Americans in circumstances similar to slavery. Weaver’s speech was sponsored by both CPCR and the student government. The flier contained merely the title of the book, a photograph of the author (who is African-American), and the time and location of the speech.

Full press release from FIRE

A lot more of background info is posted at FIRE's home page.

Read It Rating: 8
Left/Right Rating: L7 vs. R2
Freedom Rating: -6.5
Learning Percentage: 85%