As students return to college campuses across the United States, administrators are bracing for a resurgence in activism against the war in Gaza.
Or, hear me out, we could stop selling things that kill people to people who kill people.
In Texas, it’s actually illegal for a government entity to do business with a company that boycotts Israel. Calls for divestment at UT and other schools can’t legally be given any consideration because of our fucked-up state government.
Like: when I evaluate bids for the City, one of the sections I have to fill out by law relates to the bidder’s stance on the Israeli government. It’s insane.
Yes and no.
It’s technically a restriction on government, which makes it legally trickier despite being blatantly against the spirit of the first amendment.
You can support with food, medicine, and infrastructure. If we believe in killing something so dearly, we can send our own people. Harder to be a war monger if your own ass is on the line.
Keep the kids from speaking out. Definitely a good look…
Revoking the right to question the war, that’s awesome. It’s cool to violate 1st Amendment rights when the good guys do it!
We’ve been violating the First Amendment for about as long as we’ve had it. Our other felon presidential candidate ran from jail after being imprisoned for speaking out about World War 1 (which is a lot cooler than what the current one did).
1st Amendment only applies to the government. Unless these university admins are also members of government and acting in their capacity as such, then as shitty a move as this is, it’s not actually a 1st Amendment violation.
“It’s not illegal so that makes it cool.”
I personally find the ides that if you want an eduction, which is required for modern living, you need to abandon your rights as a citizen. Mandatary and needed public goods shouldn’t strip you of your mandatory and needed rights.
Students have their rights stripped, especially as a child, because some Karens and Kevins didn’t want to be a member of the HOA, they wanted to be a school board member.
Bags searched and confiscated, protests shut down, students having harmless objects taken away out of a nebulous fear of “could maybe do somethig in the future”.
I wouldn’t say that’s the sentiment expressed when people remind others of the limitations of freedom of speech. More like it’s a reminder that knowing exactly where those boundaries lie because somethings aren’t the government’s job to mediate. Sometimes it’s our collective job to resist because nobody is coming to fix it for you.
Realistically rights like the freedom of speech and expression are notoriously weak by way of actual protection by a culture. Russia technically has freedom of speech on the books but you can still be hauled off to prison for spreading “LGBTQIA propaganda”. What actually protects those rights are the expectations and moreover the outrage of a culture’s people against these acts of censorship regardless of who is perpetuating it.
Because removing people’s ability to peacefully protest and demonstrate has gone so well in the past and not escalated to less peaceful activity. /s
the us isnt looking like a democracy
And a Democratic Republic is still a democracy.
I don’t get why people repeat this one, it’s like someone asking for you to pass the water, and you respond with, “it’s a pitcher of water”
