Research Proposal

Matthew Boyer

The individual rights of man are cherished in America and this especially pertains to our freedom of speech granted to us in the First Amendment. Today on college campuses across the nation students not only struggle with paying for tuition and obtaining a job after school, but they also have limits on their freedom of expression while on campus. There has been a long history of liberal arts universities utilizing obscure speech policies that in turn foster a college environment that does in fact limit the speech of their students, individuals who have the right to free speech. Much of the debate on this issue is centered from the viewpoint that having these speech policies help to protect students and those in the university community from hate speech. The definition of hate speech is a fine line and can and does get crossed by universities in several cases, past and present, that limit the First Amendment rights of their students.

The main question in regard to the freedom of speech on campus is this: Why have these obscure policies that blatantly limit the rights of man not found to be unconstitutional by the courts and how are they not reject by university staff? I believe this research question does prompt sufficient debate because of the original nature of the topic as well as the fact that it is about constitutional rights. The debate over the First Amendment -- along with many others such as the Second -- is an ongoing one that the nation continuously addresses in times of controversy regarding incidents that reflect said rights. The reason researching this topic is manageable in its scope, despite the vague nature of the First Amendment, is that the focus is on college campuses, free speech zones and student run media. This allows the research to be narrow and conclusive.

There will be a couple of theories that directly apply the research topic of First Amendment rights on college campuses. First and foremost will be the theory behind the constitution. The individual rights of man, of all citizens, regardless of their make, will be the a huge concern. Additionally, the theory behind academic freedom will be applied to the research as well. This is important since many of the sources that surface in the research are about liberal arts colleges limiting their students freedom of expression -- which is the antithesis of liberal arts academic freedom.

There are many other time-relevant questions that surface in the research of the First Amendment rights of students on college campuses. This is especially true to the use of technology and how students express their concerns about politics, their university and other issues on social media. Additionally, research thus far has suggested a change in journalism’s future including the use of Wikileaks and the broadening of the definition of a journalist. I have a particular interest in case studies regarding student political groups and media on college campuses. These cases normally involve the courts and have interesting verdicts that don’t always challenge existing speech policies.

I believe that the general notion of my research question as a quality one, though I admit it could be more focused. As my research continues and I am therefore able to draw themes between my sources, I believe I will be able to more focus my proposed research question. Though, my question is not too basic. I believe my question is relevant to all Americans -- students, professors, administrators, parents, politicians and journalists -- because the erosion of one’s free speech on the college campus, especially as a student, is simply unjust. Therefore, questioning the ability of universities to get away with such behavior in correlation with an analysis of related court cases will help to draw conclusive evidence. Since colleges and universities are wildly changing their administrative behavior in light of privatization of higher education, it is important to not forget about the individual rights of students man.

Bibliography

Hentoff, Nat. ""Speech Codes" On The Campus and Problems of Free Speech." (1991): 1-5. Print.

Lukianoff, Greg. Unlearning Liberty: Campus Censorship and the End of American Debate. New York: Encounter, 2012. Print.

Perrino, Nicco. "How One College Student Fought His School's 'Free Speech Zone' - And Won." Forbes. N.p., 13 Sept. 2013. Web. 8 Oct. 2013.

Haynes, Charles C. "HAYNES: College Campuses Have Been Zoning out Protected Free Speech." Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. N.p., 7 Oct. 2013. Web. 8 Oct. 2013.

Byers, Dylan. "Shield Law Broadens Definition of 'journalist'" POLITICO. N.p., 9 Sept. 12. Web. 08 Oct. 2013.