STUDENT FIGHTS FOR FREE SPEECH

The Supreme Court will hear the case of Morse v. Frederick March 19,
which will determine the limits of student speech rights.

A recent article in USA Today reported school officials nationwide
will be watching this case for signs of whether the justices will
make it more difficult to enforce a range of campus speech
regulations.

In 2002, when the Olympic torch passed through Juneau, Ala., Joseph
Frederick was a high school senior. As the torch passed by his school
he displayed a banner that read "Bong Hits 4 Jesus."

Deborah Morse, the high school principal, took down the sign and
suspended Frederick for 10 days. Morse said the sign violated the
school's anti-drug policy because "bong" was a reference to marijuana.

This case has become a major legal challenge to determine how far
school administrations can go to limit a student's freedom of speech.

Although this case concerns a minor, the basic principle of the
infringement of First Amendment speech rights still applies to
University students.

Rodney Fleming, managing attorney for Student Legal Services, said
there is a big distinction between minors and adults when it comes to
the constitution.

"By agreeing to study on a college campus there are certain
restrictions you agree to," Fleming said. "You don't have ultimate
freedom of speech in the classroom because material that is not
appropriate could interfere with the learning environment."

The University has the right to regulate when and where freedom of
speech occurs on campus.

The Free Speech Area, located in front of the Union, is the
designated protected speech location. This is a place where students
are urged to go to express their free speech and thoughts.

Fleming said he has rarely had students come in to his office
complaining about not having an opportunity to express their freedom
of speech on campus.

Kendel Kissinger, a BGSU graduate, is a member of Amnesty
International. They stand in the Free Speech area every Monday from
noon to 1 p.m. This group protests war, rape, ethnic cleansing and
human rights abuses all over the world.

Monday, a man destroyed one of their signs and gave it back to the
group along with his business card. Kissinger contacted the man and
informed him that he had hindered their First Amendment rights.

"The destruction of our flier interfered with our right to free
speech," Kissinger said. "Supporting freedom of speech means
supporting the right of those to speak you disagree with."

Kissinger said usually their group does not have problems with people
being disrespectful of their protests.

"We can agree to disagree without being hostile or inhibiting free
speech," she said.

Jennifer Merrick, freshman, has similar views about First Amendment
and speech rights.

"You should be able to say what you want as long as you respect the
rules of the institution and the opinions of people around you,"
Merrick said.