FREE SPEECH ON CAMPUS

Student's First Amendment rights could be in jeopardy.

Journalists are, by definition, familiar with their First Amendment
right to free speech.

Without that right, newspapers and the rest of the news media would be
censored and restrained. The recent I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby scandal
resulting in the outing of undercover CIA agent Valerie Plame was the
result of the work of journalists. The scandal's roots lie in an
opinion piece for The New York Times and a column that ran in the
Washington Post. If not for the First Amendment, the vice president's
smear campaign would not have resulted in scandal. It would have been
legal.

Student journalists on a college newspaper have the same rights as
professionals, but different factors contribute to speech in a college
paper. Administration or student government sometimes directly control
funding for student newspapers.

Although law protects freedom of speech on college campuses, the
freedom is not an unqualified right. Colleges are allowed to approve
or deny (and therefore censor) anyone who wishes to solicit a product
or idea on campus. If deemed necessary from the courts, college
newspapers could be subjected to content approval or censorship.

The actions of Joseph Frederick, a high school student in Juno, Alaska
recently brought the issue of students' right to free speech to the
attention of the nation once again. The last time the Supreme Court
ruled on the issue was during the Vietnam War, in a defining case
regarding student speech rights. The ruling in the Tinker v. Des
Moines Independent Community School District case set a precedent for
free speech in schools.

In that landmark case, two friends were suspended for wearing black
armbands in protest of the Vietnam War. Frederick's controversial sign
read "Bong Hits 4 Jesus." Frederick is not helping the situation by
taking it to the Supreme Court.

Is it within his rights to say that? Yes, but students like him put
our rights at risk. Frederick even went on record to say that not only
did he not know what the words of his sign meant, but he displayed the
sign simply to anger his principal, Deborah Morse.

What he did was stupid and pointless, but it was within his rights.
That doesn't make it right, though. Frederick is simply an immature
child who craves attention. Does anybody really want this person
fighting for our freedom of speech?

Hopefully the antics of this high schooler will not affect the voice
of students around the country. Orange Coast College (famous for
recently censoring "under God" from the pledge of Allegiance ) has a
designated free speech area on their campus where vendors can solicit
to students.

FC has similar areas, and people like John Franklin, the religious
activist that demonstrated on the quad last Monday, often use them.

The Hornet is another outlet for free speech on campus. If a
nonsensical sign that has the words "Bong" and "Jesus" can take a case
all the way to the Supreme Court, then maybe there is something wrong
with the system. Hopefully when someone has something important to
say, student rights will weather the storm.