Last week, UTD tore down Kappa Sigma’s fundraiser box for the crime of not filling out a form they weren’t told existed. Engaging in free speech on campus now requires UTD admin personally approve of it first — First Amendment be damned.
We’ve known this was coming, though. On June 20, Gov. Greg Abbott signed Senate Bill 2972 into law. The bill severely restricts free speech in Texas, including a nighttime ban on expressive speech as well as bans on speakers and encampments. The law is so restrictive that The Retrograde is suing the UT System over it.
Though the Texas legislature is guilty of inciting this most recent wave of censorship, UTD’s overcompliance with the law should be just as shameful. By the start of fall semester, the school had already adopted the exact language of the bill into its free speech policy. UTD has yet to iron out the kinks: the Student Organization Center, for example, has sent warnings that new rules over guests and events will soon apply but has not actually created those new rules — at least not publicly. Eager administrators have decided they cannot wait for a consistent policy code, and they instead began enforcing their own interpretations when given the slightest opportunity. In place of actual policy, personal bureaucratic opinion rules.
Two weeks ago, the fraternity Kappa Sigma – Nu Omicron said its members would be “living out of a giant cardboard box at the Plinth” until Sept. 26 “to raise awareness and donations for homeless veterans.” The activity is clearly for the good of an underserved community, yet under Texas and UTD’s atrocious free speech codes, it’s entirely illegal. About 30 hours after its construction, Box-a-Thon was forced to disassemble.
UTD’s word-perfect copying of the Texas legislature caused this conflict. Very clearly, under Section 2.f.2.C of SB 2972, each university must “prohibit … camping or erecting tents or living accommodations on campus.” Section 2.f.2.F states campuses must also “prohibit … engaging in expressive activities on campus between the hours of 10 p.m. and 8 a.m.” Both of these appear in Section A, Subsection 9 of UTDPP5001.
While Box-A-Thon is not an encampment-style campus protest as legislators or administrators would envision, it is still an assembly of students in a “living accommodation” engaging in expressive, political activities by its very presence: the cardboard box is supposed to evoke images of veteran homelessness. This event was clearly not dangerous. The danger arrives instead from silencing any form of open expression under the guise of safety.
To approve is to censor
Though Box-a-Thon was destroyed by the end of day Sept. 24, it was ultimately given a chance to continue. The Dean of Students has instructed the fraternity to fill out various forms to gain special approval. Approved activism seems like something UTD’s administration is fixated on: on the night of Sept. 23, a UTDPD officer explained that the encampment “was approved” by administrators but that “[the fraternity does] have a timeframe they have to be off by.”
Of course, UTD is aware of how terrible it looks to shut down a charity event for homeless veterans. Instead of killing all speech, it has chosen a more subtle form of enforcement. UTD will allow whatever events it likes so long as the organizers gain special approval. But what of the events UTD doesn’t agree with? One can only assume UTD will chain those down in bureaucratic proceedings and policy debate, preventing them from ever happening.
Allowing UTD to selectively enforce this policy with special exceptions and approvals brings a new level of chaos to this constitutional dumpster fire. It gives UTD full authority to hand pick what speech it deems acceptable. More specifically, it gives a single person that power: Dean of Students Amanda Smith. The whole marketplace of ideas collapses when the power to regulate academic expression and dissent on campus is left in the hands of a single administrator known for grossly mismanaging issues like the removal of the Spirit Rocks and the mass arrest of 21 individuals on May 1 last year. The only dissent that would be tolerated is controlled opposition the school can spin for good publicity after years of terrible headlines.
UTD’s new, administration-dictated special exemption system enables viewpoint discrimination at its core. Asking for permission to receive a special exemption inherently leads to shrinking one’s activities to fit within the narrow space under the Dean of Students’ approval stamp. Since there exists no official criteria to determine what is worthy or unworthy of permission, student groups are left entirely to the whims of off-campus politicians and complicit bureaucrats. SB 2972 was written to silence student voices. Compliance with that law makes UTD guilty as well.
An iron fist for the future
Box-a-Thon was allowed to return the morning of Sept. 25. The Dean of Students allowed this expressive speech act with minimally intrusive restrictions. But no one should be celebrating Kappa Sigma’s special exception because not everyone will be spared.
This incident in particular sets a dark precedent for campus. For Box-a-Thon’s encampment to comply with university policy, only one notable change has been made so far: the removal of a note supporting Palestine. Additionally, it took UTD over 24 hours to enforce its policy — enforcement that coincidentally coincided with The Retrograde’s request for the university to comment on the Box-A-Thon fundraiser. Policies are meant to be applied uniformly, not just when watchdog journalists are present. Otherwise, students can’t rely on good policies like anti-sexual harassment rules to be consistently enforced.
Students should not silently allow SB 2972 to be enforced on their campus. When UTD shuts down the next political or activist event, you should publicize it online. Complain and don’t let them hear the end of it. The whole purpose of this regime is to ensure you don’t use your voice — its purpose is to stop “free speech” the moment the sun sets or administrators disagree with it. Don’t let them win.
Watch the Plinth carefully this semester. UTD has chosen to wholeheartedly adopt draconian free speech bans from the State of Texas. Now, it must enforce them.