The welfare and strength of colleges and universities and of our society depend on the ability to engage in free expression and the search for meaning. To that end, the university system recognizes and protects full freedom of inquiry, teaching, research, discussion, study, publication and, for artists, the creation and exhibition of works of arts, without hindrance, restriction, equivocation, or reprisal.

These rights extend to other parts of campus life to include the right of a faculty members or students to speak on general educational questions or about campus administration and the operation of a campus or the university system.

Academic freedom helps create a stimulating and challenging learning environment, and the MUS encourages individuals to invite, not inhibit, discourse on ideas.

No. Civil disobedience is not protected speech under the Constitution. Civil disobedience by definition refers to the refusal to obey laws or regulations by violating them.

Actions and speech in civil disobedience may conflict with the free speech rights enjoyed by others and may disrupt or interfere with campus business and academic efforts or even threaten public safety or campus assets in ways that require the campus or law enforcement to act to protect those other interests.

Examples of speech not protected by the First Amendment:

  • True threats, including speech and other conduct that communicates a serious intent to commit an act of unlawful violence to a particular individual or group of individuals.
  • Harassment, including speech and other conduct based on a protected class, targeted at an individual, that effectively denies educational access, opportunities, or rights.
  • Defamation, libel, or slander (i.e., written or spoken false statements).
  • Incitement of illegal action.
  • Invasion of privacy and confidentiality, as protected by federal and state law.
  • Child pornography.

Not all offensive speech that you may feel harassed by truly constitutes “harassment.” Harassment is prohibited by board and campus policy and is not protected by the First Amendment.

Board and campus policies prohibit discriminatory and sexual harassment. Discriminatory harassment is unwanted conduct that is based on a person’s status as a member of a protected class and has the purpose of unreasonably interfering with their participation in a campus program or activity. The factors considered when assessing whether conduct is discriminatory harassment include:

  • The identity of the parties, the nature of their relationship, and the influence of that relationship on complainant’s employment or education.
  • The nature, scope, frequency and duration of the conduct.
  • The degree to which the conduct affected a student’s education or individual’s employment.
  • The nature of higher education.

Hate speech is protected by the First Amendment. Hate crimes are not.

“Hate speech” is not defined by law and is not an exception to the First Amendment. Even if speech is hateful or offensive, it is still protected by the First Amendment. Hate speech that involves illegal conduct, however, is not protected by the First Amendment.

Hate crimes are not separate, distinct crimes. Classifying a crime as a hate crime depends on whether the offender was motivated by bias. For example, if a person assaults someone else, it’s a crime. If the facts of the case show that the assailant was motivated to commit the crime because of bias against the victim’s protected class status, the assault would also be classified as a hate crime.

  • Spoken word;
  • Print;
  • Internet;
  • Social media;
  • Radio; and
  • Television.

Free speech on the internet and social media is entitled to the same level of protection as print and other media, as determined in Reno v. ACLU, 521U.S. 844 (1997).

Please note that social media websites require users to agree to certain terms and conditions for use of those sites, and those agreements may allow the sites to regulate speech posted there in ways they deem appropriate. Sites can and often do remove or hide social media statements that violate their terms of use.