Quote:
Originally Posted by Kevin
No they can't. The University cannot abridge your Constitutional rights and call it "University policy." It simply isn't within their power.
The chapter has been put on social probation by the University. I'll bet they did all of this without even so much as a hearing. At public schools, you're entitled to certain things. Just because the school ignores the law, doesn't make the school right.
Quick research brought me to a case wherein Sigma Chi was sanctioned by George Mason University for having an "ugly woman" contest. In one of the skits, a fraternity member dressed up in "an offensive caricature of a black woman." The sanctioning was done because the fraternity's conduct was offensive and created a hostile environment to blacks and women (sound familiar?). The fraternity was given social probation for the rest of the semester and was put on probation for two years.
The fraternity sued under 42 U.S. 1983 (the Civil Rights Act) alleging that they had been deprived of Constitutional rights under the color of state law.
The 4th Circuit held that "[t]he University certainly has a substantial interest in maintaining an educational environment free of discrimination and racism, and in providing gender-neutral education. Yet it seems equally apparent that it has available numerous alternatives to imposing punishment on students based on the viewpoints they express. We agree wholeheartedly that it is the University officials' responsibility, even their obligation, to achieve the goals they have set. On the other hand, a public university has many constitutionally permissible means to protect female and minority students. We must emphasize, as have other courts, that “the manner of [its action] cannot consist of selective limitations upon speech.”
This is of course not binding on the N.D. courts, but it'd be extremely persuasive as this is almost exactly the same sort of situation.
The citation is 993 F.2d 386, (4th Cir., 1993) if anyone cares.
|
Where was it said that the University put the chapter on social probation? The only mention of probation that I saw was in this thread and it was a passive sentence, no mention if HQ did it or if the University did.
And you just contradicted your post following this one. Technically the law does not, as of now, prohibit it unless a court rules since the previous precedent is not binding. "Persuasive" perhaps, but "illegal" is just an opinion at this point.
Threaded Mode
