Even after FIRE’s criticism, Susquehanna doubles down on censoring students’ political expression

As the midterm elections approach, one institution has taken steps to ensure students may express their political opinions, while another has doubled down on restricting these rights.

Every year, FIRE writes hundreds of letters to colleges and universities across the country advocating for the rights of students and faculty. Some schools heed our warnings while others throw expressive rights to the wind. This is a tale of two universities: one that seized the opportunity to improve its policies, and another that took the opposite tack.

In the span of a year, FIRE wrote to two universities, Susquehanna University and Washington and Lee University, alerting them of very similar violations of students’ expressive rights. FIRE criticized Susquehanna in 2020 for restricting students’ ability to display political campaign signs in their dorm room windows ahead of that year’s presidential and local elections. And in 2021, FIRE criticized W&L for preventing the College Republicans from displaying campaign materials in support of then-gubernatorial candidate Glenn Youngkin.

Both W&L and Susquehanna cited their status as 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations in censoring students’ political speech. However, as we have often explained about political speech on campus, the IRS prohibits institutions from taking political stances, not students — because individual students and student groups do not speak on the university’s behalf and may engage in core political speech. In censoring students’ speech, W&L and Susquehanna both violated the expressive rights that they guarantee to students.

And that’s where the story diverges.

To our dismay, we recently learned that, since hearing from FIRE, Susquehanna amended its political activity on campus policy to further restrict students’ expressive rights. The policy now claims that prohibited endorsements of candidates include placing signs on windows, and says that the policy applies to expression “visible from the exterior of the building.” 

This is what Susquehanna claimed all along, but now it has doubled down and enshrined on paper its limitation of students’ expressive rights. This policy violates Susequehanna’s promise that it is “committed to the free expression of political views by members of the campus community and to the value of discourse and debate in the educational process.”

On the other hand, when criticized for its limitations on students’ political expression, W&L rose to the challenge, taking steps to ensure students can express their political opinions. It made clear in the university’s political activity policy that “IRS prohibitions on political activity do not apply to students in their individual private capacity.”

The stark differences in Susquehanna’s and W&L’s actions here belong in a Goofus and Gallant cartoon. In the famous cartoon series, Gallant always takes the high road, while Goofus, without fail, exhibits irresponsible behavior. Based on Susequhanna and W&L’s actions here, it’s pretty clear who is Goofus and who is Gallant.

To be clear: Students who express their views through words and signs do not endanger a university’s tax-exempt status but instead invite an environment of political discourse. This kind of core political speech should be encouraged on campus, not restricted. 

To universities facing FIRE’s ire, we say: Be like W&L, for the sake of your students and to create a culture of free expression on campus.

FIRE defends the rights of students and faculty members — no matter their views — at public and private universities and colleges in the United States. If you are a student or a faculty member facing investigation or punishment for your speech, submit your case to FIRE today. If you’re faculty member at a public college or university, call the Faculty Legal Defense Fund 24-hour hotline at 254-500-FLDF (3533).

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