A federal judge has ruled in favor of three students at Clovis Community College who sued the school for violating their right to free speech.
The three students will each receive $20,000 in damages from the school.
The backstory: Two years ago the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) filed a lawsuit against Clovis Community College for taking down a student group’s flyers.
- The flyers were put up by the Clovis chapter of the Young America’s Foundation and its officers: Alejandro Flores, Juliette Colunga and Daniel Flores.
- The flyers promoted anti-communist and pro-life views.
The big picture: Judge Jennifer Thurston ruled that Clovis Community College’s policy for posters and flyers violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
- Thurston also ruled that former school President Lori Bennett violated the First and Fourteenth Amendments.
- Along with the $20,000 award for each student, the attorneys were awarded $250,000 in fees.
- State Center Community College District is now prohibited from banning all speech, including inappropriate or offensive language, from recognized student clubs.
What we’re watching: State Center Community College District has to adopt a new policy to protect the First Amendment rights of its students.
- District administrators will also attend First Amendment training sessions for two years.
What they’re saying: “We won. We showed the school they were wrong,” Alejandro Flores said. “FIRE had our back at every step throughout the process. If you think your speech is being stifled, don’t stay quiet, because when you stay quiet, nothing changes.”
- FIRE attorney Daniel Ortner said the ruling will benefit the speech rights of over 50,000 students in California.
- “From now on, student groups won’t have to second guess or jump through hoops just to hang a flyer on the bulletin board,” Ortner said. “And rather than wielding unrestrained power to decide whose views are ‘appropriate’ or ‘offensive,’ administrators will defer to the First Amendment.”
