FIRE Update

Speech Code of the Month

FIRE announces its Speech Code of the Month for June 2012: Centre College in Kentucky. Centre promises to protect students’ fundamental rights, but it severely curtails students’ ability to criticize their administration by prohibiting anything "not showing due respect" for a college official. Over the years, FIRE has seen countless institutions apply their speech codes to suppress student criticism of administrators. This policy—backed by the explicit threat of disciplinary action—puts that form of censorship in stark relief and cannot help but chill student expression on important issues.
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Latest Videos
• 12 Terrible Colleges for Free Speech – 2012
• Silencing U: Five Outrageous Cases of Campus Censorship
• Don’t Mess With Firefly! How SciFi Fans Made a Campus Safe
• FIRE and You: Together Changing Campus Culture

The Latest News from FIRE

Whistleblowing Scientist Who Challenged Environmental Regulation Sues UCLA
After 35 years at the University of California, Los Angeles, Dr. James E. Enstrom is suing UCLA to keep his job. Following many years of disagreement over research on air pollution and its implications for environmental regulations, UCLA finally refused to reappoint Enstrom after he engaged in successful whistleblowing against a member of the department. When UCLA told Enstrom he was being let go because his research failed to accord with the department’s "mission," Enstrom turned to FIRE for help.
Mississippi State University Earns ‘Green Light’ Rating
Free speech is the rule at Mississippi State University (MSU), which no longer maintains any policies restricting student speech protected by the First Amendment. MSU now holds the highest, "green light," rating for free speech from FIRE. While the overwhelming majority of the nation’s colleges maintain policies infringing upon students’ free speech rights, MSU is now a proud exception as one of just 17 schools nationwide to earn a green light rating. MSU administrators worked with FIRE to address the university’s speech codes.
New Report: California’s Universities Do Not Promote the Free Exchange of Ideas
A scathing report on "The Unfulfilled Promise of Public Higher Education in California" finds that California’s public university systems are failing to provide students with a robust education grounded in a free exchange of ideas. Using data from FIRE on speech codes in California, the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA) concludes not only that public universities in the state "are failing to protect legitimate expression and free speech" but also that they "are actively discouraging a robust exchange of ideas."
Consider Supporting FIRE’s Internship Program Today
Our internship program attracts some of the brightest young minds from colleges across the country and arms them with the tools they need to successfully fight campus censorship. It’s a vital program in need of your support. With a gift of $10 or $25, you can help ensure this program continues to educate the next generation of leaders so they understand the importance of individual rights and have the confidence to staunchly defend them. You can visit this page to see where this summer’s interns attend school and to make a donation in support of the program. Thank you!

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Recent Torch Posts
• Sinclair CC Police Ban Signs at Religious Freedom Rally
• UCLA: When Caught, Just Lie About Stuff
• ETSU, Brute?
• On a Collision Course with Free Speech
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Recent Media Coverage
• "Student Who Wrecked Pro-Life Display With Car to Face Judge," by Jeff Schapiro, The Christian Post, June 9, 2012
• "Judges Let University Prez Face Damage Claim," by Bob Unruh, WorldNetDaily, June 16, 2012
• "University Of Cincinnati Free Speech Zones Ruled Unconstitutional By Federal Judge," by Tyler Kingkade, The Huffington Post, June 14, 2012

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