undone

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV6-QqitjOc]

undone

American Fed Gov - Freedom of Speech (FIRE)

The freedom of opinion and expression was penned as the 19th Article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations (United Nations, n.d). Evidently, the freedom of speech of any individual has an imperative value. It is believed that America prides herself in the freedom of speech as it distinguishes her from any other country. This element of freedom is especially vital in the education system. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education is a non-profit organization based in Philadelphia. FIRE was formed to purposefully defend and sustain the individual rights of students attaining a higher education (FIRE, n. d). Up till now, FIRE has closely and successfully the freedom of speech and speech codes in close to 400 colleges across the nation.

FIRE evaluates the selected schools through different criteria’s. In hopes of simplifying their ratings, FIRE bases their ratings using the traffic light system. Just like any normal traffic light, there are three lights namely red, yellow and green. To begin with, the ‘Red Light’ rating signifies that there is a policy in the school that ‘clearly and substantially’ restricts the freedom of speech. ‘Yellow Light’ shows that there are policies in the school that restrict a more limited amount of protected expression. In simpler terms, this light is given when the school is vague and does not actually define the line between what is acceptable and what is not. For example, when using the word “Verbal Abuse”, the term abuse is not defined as to what it encompasses. Thirdly for the ‘Green Light’ rating, the school does not seriously limit speech. In fact, there is a freedom for free expression in this school. To name a few, schools with this rating are schools like Duke University, Arizona State University, and Carnegie Melon University.

However, there is also a gray light that means that the institution is ‘not yet rated’. An exception from the traffic light system is the ‘Warning’ rating. This is especially for private institutions. These institutions are run solely by private associations and they possess the rights to prioritize their own values. This means that the freedom of speech is not necessarily emphasized or valued in this institution. Therefore, per the FIRE rating system, there are only five categories as to which a school can fall under.

The two schools compared for their FIRE ratings are the University of Oklahoma (OU) and Oklahoma State University (OSU). The difference in the level of speech regulation is the comparison factor studied.

The University of Oklahoma (OU) received a ‘Yellow’ light rating because per FIRE,

they have at least one policy that is ambiguous and can be easily abused by people in power. Their policy for residence life was vague and received a ‘Yellow Light’ rating. This is demonstrated in their Resident Life policy. For instance, they have a community living guide for room decorations. This clause basically means that any Residence Life staff possess the authority to tell a student if his or her decorations are offensive. This is horribly ambiguous as it is up to the discretion of the staff to judge what is and what is not offensive. If the staff has a very liberal view, and the residents are bringing offensive posters, they may not ask the resident to remove it. In a reverse situation, the same applies.  If the residents think their friend’s poster is offensive and the staff does not agree, there is no clear guidelines. Therefore, it is ineffective in promoting free speech. However, they have a ‘Green light’ policy in terms of non-discrimination policies. This is especially relevant after the recent cases of the SAE fraternity’s chant that went viral. Also, the freedom of speech is encouraged with the allocation of places to demonstrate or protest. OU has allocated at least twenty venues on the main campus for the freedom of speech. They do not require prior reservation and can be utilized by any student. Other than that, the Registered Student Organizations are highly dedicated to ensure that the equipment for any protest is made available with prior booking. This is very significant as James Madison phrased it well when he said “I believe there are more instances of the abridgment of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations.” Organizations like the Black Lives Matter movement have taken advantage of this opportunity to freely express their views on campus. This is undoubtedly empowering for the students who are driven for their cause and very much facilitated by OU.

Oklahoma State University (OSU) received a ‘Red’ light rating because they have at least one policy that restricts the freedom of speech. OSU’s harassment’s policy received a ‘Red’ light rating. This is because they have defined sexual harassment as a form of gender discrimination. This sounds a little absurd as sexual harassment does not have anything to do with gender. While it is generally understood that females are usually the victims of sexual harassment, there should be no stereotype to this kind of treatment. That policy earned OSU their ‘Red’ light rating. However, they received a ‘yellow’ light rating for the expression of free speech. Unlike OU, OSU did not specially allocate an area for free speech on the campus. Students do not know for sure if they can demonstrate or protest without being comprehended. However, they received a ‘green light’ for being information technology appropriate. This is because their computer usage policy has banned the communication of facilities from sending harassing or obscene messages to anyone. Therefore, the policies in OSU are ambiguous for the reason stated earlier.

George Orwell, renown novelist said “If liberty means anything at all, it means the right to tell people what they do not want to hear.” This is because the truth is not necessarily a generally accepted idea. Speech codes when utilized correctly, may bring about meaningful conversations. In the college setting, every student should aim to attain knowledge. Knowledge in this context encompasses the learning with a cautious mindset of not taking everything as it is. This is because education may sometimes be biased. For instance, the History course are authored and told from the perspective of the white man. This is one-sided and does not bring into perspective the slave’s view, the native American’s view and other side characters. Clearly, students should always seek out the truth and question the ‘why’ behind what they are learning. It is crucial to ask hard questions with the best intentions of seeking truth. Other than that, students need the ability to think for themselves for the speech codes to bring about any meaningful change. For example, the n-word is very offensive to the black students on campus, yet the SAE fraternity brothers took it upon themselves to make a song out of it. They are not aware that it is just a rude word. It has a deeper meaning to them as it prods the past lives of the black people in the country. Most of them having a background of slaver and being associated with the n-word in that era. No sane person will be upset for no reason over a single word. Therefore, with the hopeful mutual exchange of perspective, meaningful conversations will eventually be birthed.

As a conclusion, the free speech code was created with sincere intentions to promote unity and celebrate diversity. However, it is up to the students in the schools to abide by the code, honor the code and preserve the code. The rights of the students to free speech should be looked on as an effort to dispel any kind of misunderstandings and stereotypes. With the diversity present in Oklahoma, speech codes should be revered to ensure that there is a comfortable line to where every member feels respected. To sum it up, Mokokoma Mokhonoana, South African Philospher said that, “Freedom of speech is unnecessary if the people to whom it is granted do not think for themselves.” 

master of none

I spent the week watching the Netflix series 'Master of None' during study breaks. As much as I do not agree with most of the values, I can say that so many of Dev's problem's resonated with me. Not being entirely sure about anything, and choosing to live life to the fullest. He touches on themes like appreciating our parents, finding the value in self, when everything goes awry.

 For some unrelatable reasons watching this made me think about the life I am living. Not specifically in this season, but just in general. And I just think, how many of the relationships and the time I invest in. Would it be reciprocal in what I want? And I know life is fleeting like the grass of the fields, but I hope with all my heart that I live with all I can and make the fleeting moment count. Because honestly, worrying about the future is really not the best way to be spending your energy. And with the many things I face it is so easy to always fall into the trap of worrying, but again and again I find myself being silenced by the mere fact that anxiety really is mistrust in God.

 So with that, Matilda from Roald Dahl's book somewhat sums it up, "Never do anything by halves if you want to get away with it. Be outrageous. Go the whole hog. Make sure everything you do is so completely crazy it's unbelievable...”