Public university investigating students for stepping
onHamasandHezbollah flags that contained the name of Allah
Volokh, Eugene
VOLOKH at law.ucla.edu
Thu Feb 8 13:57:16 PST 2007
Of course that's absolutely right -- but I would go further and
say that we have a right to disrespect even pure religious symbols, as
well as those that have been turned into political ones.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Paul Finkelman [mailto:pfink at albanylaw.edu]
> Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 1:58 PM
> To: Volokh, Eugene; CONLAWPROF at lists.ucla.edu
> Subject: RE: Public university investigating students for
> stepping onHamasandHezbollah flags that contained the name of Allah
>
> I have trouble getting my head around the idea that it is ok
> to use a religous symbol for political purposes (ie: a flag)
> and then to turn around and say you cannot disrespect the
> flag because it has a religious
> symbol on it. Would it be wrong to burn the Swedish flag because it
> has a cross on it? Is the position here that people have a
> constitutional right to burn the US flag but not someone
> else's flag if it has a religious symbol on it? This can
> only be the case if Lewis Carroll is running things at San
> Francisco State.
>
>
> Paul Finkelman
> President William McKinley Distinguished Professor of Law
> and Public Policy
> Albany Law School
> 80 New Scotland Avenue
> Albany, New York 12208-3494
>
> 518-445-3386
> pfink at albanylaw.edu
> >>> "Volokh, Eugene" <VOLOKH at law.ucla.edu> 02/08/07 1:11 PM >>>
> Hmm -- how can we distinguish "disrespecting the name of Allah"
> from "creating a hostile environment," presumably by
> disrespecting the name of Allah? (Also, the investigation
> relates to supposedly "inciting violence," which seems
> unlikely if "inciting" is meant in its First Amendment sense,
> creating a hostile environment, and violating rules against
> "incivility.")
>
> Say someone was chanting that all veterans are
> babykillers, or reenacting Serrano's "Piss Christ" (without
> actual public urination).
> Would we distinguish a university's punishing demonstrators
> for "disrespecting veterans / Jesus Christ" from the
> university's supposedly punishing demonstrators for "creating
> a hostile environment" based on veteran status or religion?
>
> Eugene
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: conlawprof-bounces at lists.ucla.edu
> > [mailto:conlawprof-bounces at lists.ucla.edu] On Behalf Of Kermit
> > Roosevelt
> > Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 10:08 AM
> > To: CONLAWPROF at lists.ucla.edu
> > Subject: RE: Public university investigating students for
> stepping on
> > HamasandHezbollah flags that contained the name of Allah
> >
> > It sounds unfortunate, and based on the description of the facts it
> > does also sound to me like discipline would be a first amendment
> > violation.
> > But it doesn't sound like the investigation was triggered by the
> > allegation that the demonstrators were disrespecting the
> name of Allah
> > (which would clearly be beyond the university's power to
> prohibit) but
> > rather that they were inciting violence and creating a hostile
> > environment. I would think a public university can at
> least sometimes
> > discipline people for doing those things, even if they do
> so by means
> > of disrespecting Allah.
> >
> > --
> > Kermit Roosevelt
> > Assistant Professor
> > University of Pennsylvania Law School
> > 3400 Chestnut Street
> > Philadelphia PA 19104
> > 215.746.8775
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: conlawprof-bounces at lists.ucla.edu
> > [mailto:conlawprof-bounces at lists.ucla.edu] On Behalf Of
> Volokh, Eugene
> > Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 12:26 PM
> > To: conlawprof at lists.ucla.edu
> > Subject: Public university investigating students for
> > stepping on Hamas
> > andHezbollah flags that contained the name of Allah
> >
> > So reports the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education,
> > which I've generally found quite trustworthy. Seems like any
> > discipline
> > based on this investigation would quite clearly violate the First
> > Amendment; it's unfortunate that the university is even
> investigating
> > this.
> >
> > Eugene
> >
> >
> >
> > ________________________________
> >
> > ...
> >
> > San Francisco State University (SFSU) is investigating the campus
> > College Republicans for disrespecting the name of Allah during an
> > anti-terrorism rally on campus. As part of their rally,
> members of the
> > College Republicans stepped on makeshift Hamas and Hezbollah
> > flags that
> > they constructed out of butcher paper. Because the flags
> bore the word
> > "Allah" written in Arabic script, SFSU is investigating
> > accusations that
> > the College Republicans attempted to incite and create a hostile
> > environment. Desecrating a flag-even burning an American flag-is
> > expression protected by the First Amendment, and cannot be
> > punished at a
> > public university like SFSU.
> >
> > FIRE's full press release on this case appears below, but if
> > your e-mail
> > client does not support HTML, you can view a link-rich version at
> > http://www.thefire.org/index.php/article/7718.html.
> >
> > I would be happy to answer any questions you may have. You
> > can reach me
> > by replying to this e-mail or by calling the number below.
> >
> > Sincerely,
> >
> > Robert Shibley, Vice President
> > Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE)
> > 601 Walnut Street, Suite 510
> > Philadelphia, PA 19106
> > Phone: 215-717-3473; Fax: 215-717-3440
> > ------------------------
> >
> > San Francisco State University Investigates Students for
> > Anti-Terrorism
> > Protest;
> >
> > Students Charged for Stepping on Makeshift Hamas and Hezbollah Flags
> >
> >
> >
> > SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., February 8, 2007-In a profound display of
> > disrespect for free speech, San Francisco State University (SFSU) is
> > investigating its College Republicans for hosting an anti-terrorism
> > rally on campus in which participants stepped on makeshift
> > Hezbollah and
> > Hamas flags. After students filed a complaint claiming they were
> > offended because the flags bore the word "Allah," SFSU initiated an
> > investigation into accusations of incitement, creation of a hostile
> > environment, and incivility. Members of the College Republicans then
> > contacted the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education
> (FIRE) for
> > assistance.
> >
> >
> >
> > "At a public university, stepping on a flag-even burning an American
> > flag-is without question a constitutionally protected act
> of political
> > protest," FIRE Vice President Robert Shibley said. "The right
> > to protest
> > is at the very heart of the First Amendment, and means
> nothing if only
> > inoffensive expression is permitted."
> >
> >
> >
> > The College Republicans "offense" took place on October 17,
> 2006, when
> > they held an anti-terrorism protest in SFSU's Malcolm X
> Plaza. During
> > the protest, several members of the group stepped on butcher
> > paper they
> > had painted to resemble the flags of Hamas and Hezbollah.
> > Unbeknownst to
> > the protestors, the flags they had copied contain the word "Allah"
> > written in Arabic script.
> >
> >
> >
> > On October 26, a student filed a formal complaint with the
> university
> > against the College Republicans. By December, Director of the
> > Office of
> > Student Programs and Leadership Development (OSPLD) Joey Greenwell
> > notified the College Republicans in an e-mail
> > <http://www.thefire.org/index.php/article/7715.html> that
> > the complaint
> > accused them of "walking on a banner with the word 'Allah'
> written in
> > Arabic script," which led to "allegations of attempts to
> > incite violence
> > and create a hostile environment" and "allegations of actions of
> > incivility." Greenwell also stated that the OSPLD had concluded its
> > investigation and had passed the case along to the Student
> > Organization
> > Hearing Panel (SOHP), a panel of students, faculty, and
> staff members
> > who will deliver a verdict on the charges.
> >
> >
> >
> > The College Republicans contacted FIRE, which wrote
> > <http://www.thefire.org/index.php/article/7716.html> to SFSU
> > President
> > Robert A. Corrigan on January 23, 2007, to protest SFSU's unlawful
> > actions and to remind this public university of its obligations to
> > protect students' constitutional rights. FIRE's letter
> emphasized that
> > "incitement" and creating a "hostile environment" are legal
> terms that
> > are not applicable to the College Republicans' actions of
> > stepping on a
> > flag. FIRE wrote that "SFSU has a duty to uphold the First Amendment
> > rights of all of its students, even if their expressive
> > activity offends
> > the religious sensibilities of some."
> >
> >
> >
> > SFSU replied
> <http://www.thefire.org/index.php/article/7717.html> to
> > FIRE's letter on January 29 by saying that the university is
> > investigating the complaint "to give all parties the confidence that
> > they will be heard and fairly treated by a panel that includes
> > representatives of all the University's key constituencies." Yet
> > students report that OSPLD has the power to dismiss baseless charges
> > after concluding an investigation. SFSU's student group misconduct
> > procedures
> > <http://www.sfsu.edu/~ospld/conduct/hearing_panel.htm> also
> > give OSPLD Director Greenwell the option of settling the
> > complaint with
> > an "informal resolution of charges." Instead, Greenwell
> > passed the case
> > along for trial before SOHP. If SOHP finds the College Republicans
> > guilty, punishment could range from a letter of warning to the
> > revocation of recognition.
> >
> >
> >
> > "In a free society, neither SFSU nor any other agency of the
> > government
> > has the power to investigate a group simply for disrespecting a
> > religious symbol," FIRE's Shibley said. "By continuing this
> > investigation, SFSU is not just charting new territory in campus
> > repression, but its actions come into direct conflict with
> the United
> > States Constitution. The charges against the College
> > Republicans must be
> > immediately dismissed."
> >
> >
> >
> > FIRE is a nonprofit educational foundation that unites civil
> > rights and
> > civil liberties leaders, scholars, journalists, and public
> > intellectuals
> > from across the political and ideological spectrum on behalf of
> > individual rights, due process, freedom of expression,
> > academic freedom,
> > and rights of conscience at our nation's colleges and universities.
> > FIRE's efforts to preserve liberty on campuses across America can be
> > viewed at www.thefire.org <http://www.thefire.org/> .
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > CONTACT:
> >
> > Robert Shibley, Vice President, FIRE: 215-717-3473;
> robert at thefire.org
> >
> > Robert A. Corrigan, President, SFSU: 415-338-1381;
> president at sfsu.edu
> >
> > Joey Greenwell, Director of the Office of Student Programs and
> > Leadership Development, SFSU: 415-338-3885; joey at sfsu.edu
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Click here if you do not want to receive further emails.
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> > ail=volokh
> > @law.ucla.edu&reid=7542&emid=524>
> >
> >
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