Censoring Free Speech On Campus

Tomorrow, the UC Berkeley campus Republicans will hold an “affirmative action bake sale,” in which whites must pay a higher cost than minorities for baked goods. The organization seeks to satirize affirmative action.

In response, the Berkeley student government has threatened to defund the group. Similar restrictions of free speech have hampered other campus organizations that have held "affirmative action bake sales."

However, administrators have also curbed hurtful speech on campuses. In an incident on Yale’s campus in May, members of a fraternity repeatedly yelled “no means yes” and other sexist chants during a campus march. The fraternity has since been suspended in the interest of preserving a non-threatening campus environment. 

These two examples raise the question: Should there be any limitations on speech at colleges and universities? Where should we draw the line between free speech and preserving a non-threatening campus environment?

Photo Credit: Jayel Aheram