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Legally speaking, the University admin cannot do anything to Chinese students who boo and walk out, and also cannot do anything to white supremacists who boo an

Legally speaking, the University admin cannot do anything to Chinese students who boo and walk out, and also cannot do anything to white supremacists who boo and walk out. In the US, Students have First Amendment rights to express themselves. The critical point here is that by walking out they did not prevent any speakers from exercising their own First Amendment rights. It does not mean we have to respect them for that or be polite about it. That's our First Amendment right.

teebs 4y ago
That's not how the First Amendment works. Cornell University is a private organization and it can choose not to do business with people if it wants to, provided that it's not breaking other laws by doing so. Students get suspended or expelled for speech all the time. (I would guess public universities can too - the First Amendment says "Congress shall make no law..." - not sure where its boundaries are drawn though.)
- fspeech 4y ago
  Private universities can be subject to free speech rules: states could mandate them, and if they take federal grants or otherwise do business with the federal government they could be subject to additional rules. See https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/ https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/
- vorpalhex 4y ago
  A public university is restricted by the first amendment. That doesn't mean they can never have speech limitations, but political speech is very heavily protected. Cornell is a private university, but it does receive significant government money and some of it's underling colleges are state funded. If it was acting in a way as to obviously disrespect the first amendment, that funding could be revoked.
- barry-cotter 4y ago
  Cornell isn’t a fully private university. I really doubt it can do any more censorship than a fully public university. > Although it's an Ivy League university, chartered as a private institution, it includes undergraduate colleges and schools that receive some funding from New York State. They are sometimes called state contract colleges. The state subsidy results in lower tuition for students who have New York State residency and are enrolled in these colleges or schools https://cornelladmissions.happyfox.com/kb/article/217-is-cornell-a-public-or-private-institution/ https://cornelladmissions.happyfox.com/kb/article/217-is-cor...
nradov 4y ago
That's not really correct. The First Amendment doesn't necessarily prevent private schools such as Cornell from disciplining students for legal speech. This is one area where public universities are generally superior. https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/ https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/
- selimthegrim 4y ago
  There may be state laws that bind the private schools like in California.
spoonjim 4y ago
Stridently confident and 100% wrong.

teebs 4y ago

That's not how the First Amendment works. Cornell University is a private organization and it can choose not to do business with people if it wants to, provided that it's not breaking other laws by doing so. Students get suspended or expelled for speech all the time. (I would guess public universities can too - the First Amendment says "Congress shall make no law..." - not sure where its boundaries are drawn though.)

fspeech 4y ago
Private universities can be subject to free speech rules: states could mandate them, and if they take federal grants or otherwise do business with the federal government they could be subject to additional rules. See https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/ https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/
vorpalhex 4y ago
A public university is restricted by the first amendment. That doesn't mean they can never have speech limitations, but political speech is very heavily protected. Cornell is a private university, but it does receive significant government money and some of it's underling colleges are state funded. If it was acting in a way as to obviously disrespect the first amendment, that funding could be revoked.
barry-cotter 4y ago
Cornell isn’t a fully private university. I really doubt it can do any more censorship than a fully public university. > Although it's an Ivy League university, chartered as a private institution, it includes undergraduate colleges and schools that receive some funding from New York State. They are sometimes called state contract colleges. The state subsidy results in lower tuition for students who have New York State residency and are enrolled in these colleges or schools https://cornelladmissions.happyfox.com/kb/article/217-is-cornell-a-public-or-private-institution/ https://cornelladmissions.happyfox.com/kb/article/217-is-cor...

nradov 4y ago

That's not really correct. The First Amendment doesn't necessarily prevent private schools such as Cornell from disciplining students for legal speech. This is one area where public universities are generally superior. https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/ https://campusfreespeechguide.pen.org/the-law/the-basics/

selimthegrim 4y ago
There may be state laws that bind the private schools like in California.

spoonjim 4y ago

Stridently confident and 100% wrong.