Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Another Victory For Christian Free Speech On Campus

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Flashback...


Story here.


A California court has ruled in favor of a student who was insulted for defending traditional marriage and has ordered the college to strike from its website a sexual harassment policy that censors speech deemed "offensive" to homosexual people.

(...)

According to court documents, the district's website sexual harassment policy stated, "If [you are] unsure if certain comments or behavior are offensive do not do it, do not say it. ... Ask if something you do or say is being perceived as offensive or unwelcome."

Judge King, however, ruled, "By using subjective words such as 'hostile' and 'offensive,' the policy is so subjective and broad that it applies to protected speech."

He further quoted court precedent, stating, "'It is firmly settled that under our Constitution the public expression of ideas may not be prohibited merely because the ideas are themselves offensive to some of their hearers.'"

"Thus," the ruling concluded, "the policy reaches constitutionally protected speech that is merely offensive to some listeners, such as discussions of religion, homosexual relations and marriage, sexual morality and freedom, polygamy, or even gender politics and policies. Indeed, the LACC's website indicates that sexual harassment can include 'sexist statements ... or degrading attitudes/comments about women or men.' This could include an individual's outdated, though protected, opinions on the proper role of the genders. While it may be desirable to promote harmony and civility, these values cannot be enforced at the expense of protected speech under the First Amendment. Thus, the policy is unconstitutionally overbroad."

Just because someone doesn't like the speech, doesn't mean that it's lawful or constitutional to censor it.

And this principle applies equally to Canada, where we still have those fascist, censorive, rights-and-Charter-ignoring "Human Rights" Commissions. Speaking of which, Ezra Levant, the freedom fighter campaigning against those fascists, has another good piece on them, and it involves members of the CHRC who hijacked a private citizen's wireless internet router for the purpose of spreading "neo-Nazi" hatred online with the goal of entrapping people who respond in ways that could be deemed by the fascists to be "hateful". By the way, he mentions that the head honcho of the CHRC, Jennifer "Little Miss Jackboots" Lynch, has a "bulletproof bunker" for an office... This deserves another post of its own...