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UTexas Threatens to Evict Students for Political Signs

By Pedro de la Torre - Oct 9th, 2008 at 2:19 pm

Two students at the University of Texas – Austin are being threatened with eviction from the dorms, and even with being barred from registering for next semester’s classes, because they have refused to take down Barack Obama campaign signs from their dorm windows. Both the College Democrats and the College Republicans have denounced the move.

The university’s administrators have justified their decision by saying it is an attempt to keep the campus “uncluttered”:

I think Free Exchange on Campus has it right:

The University of Texas is attacking the most fundamental and important premise of the First Amendment - that the state cannot prevent citizens from expressing their opinions on political matters. They are attacking this right under the flimsiest of pretexts. Campus beauty trumps freedom of speech? Really? It is inconceivable to me that - in one of the most exciting and engaging political campaign seasons in our nation’s history - UT would consciously seek to prevent their students from participating in the political process and would punish those who continue to participate. [emphasis in the original]

Free Exchange has asked people to let the UT administration know how you feel. You can contact President William Powers, Jr. at president@po.utexas.edu, and Associate Vice President for Legal Affairs Jeff Graves (seen in the clip above) at jgraves@austin.utexas.edu.

Tags: 2008 presidential election, campus, free speech, Texas