A new proposal from The University of Louisville would put even more restrictions on already tight speech rules on campus, according to students at the university.
The proposal, put forward by UofL earlier in July, would outright ban chalk and yard signs from being used on campus.
“This will kill campus culture, which is really depressing because I think, especially since COVID (19), a lot of student RSOs (Registered Student Organizations) never really recovered from it. RSOs that use chalking and yard signs for advertising for events won’t be able to do that anymore.”
That comes from George, a 21-year-old who will be heading to graduate school at UofL after graduating with a Biology degree and head of an activist RSO.
LEO Weekly has given permission to three students quoted in this story to go by pseudonyms due to potential repercussions from the university as they are all three on scholarship at UofL, and say they worry about their standing at the school for speaking out against the proposed policy.
What happens to students who break these rules?
The university put out its lengthy policy proposal, indicating what will and what will not be banned. From it, there are also disciplinary actions that can be taken against those who break the rules, including putting yard signs down and chalking on any surface at UofL.
“Failure to comply with this policy may result in the university removing Temporary Signage from the university campuses and/or loss of future privileges. Individuals, groups, or organizations will be responsible for costs associated with the installation or removal of Signage and/or any damages to university property caused by Signage.”
First time offenders will see a loss of major privileges on campus that could help organizations spread awareness or information about their group or cause, including protestors who want others to see what they are rallying for.
“Gross or repeat violations of this policy are subject to appropriate sanctions and/or disciplinary action as defined in accordance with applicable university policies. UPDC is responsible for enforcement of this policy.”
Those disciplinary actions could be as severe as expulsion from the school, according to George.
“Because of how the policy is, breaking these kinds of rules can lead to punitive actions leveled against these RSOs,” he said. “It is very much up to the university, but it could go up to as much as removing your organization’s status or kicking you off campus.”
Why is the University of Louisville going to such lengths to remove these forms of speech on campus?
Thomas, 21, a computer science major said that these extreme measures could come from an “activist” student body in support of major issues like the Israeli-Palestinian war, LGBTQ+ rights in Kentucky and across the nation and support for socioeconomically disadvantaged students.
“We are basically in the largest escalation in pro-Palestinian protests across college campuses across the country. We see so many different campuses use tactics for protests,” said Thomas. “We see people holding encampments for multiple days at a time. Only a few miles away we see it at IU Bloomington and at OSU (Ohio State) we see the same thing. We see snipers pointed at (protestors). The usage of so many methods to spread a message of Palestine, especially chalk at UofL within the past year of our escalation of Palestine.”
Thomas said he supports the ongoing national protests that have rang out at college campuses across the country, including at the University of Louisville. He said he believes the move from UofL is purely for optics, making sure the university is seen in a positive light from pro-Israel groups, as to accrue more funding and support from them.
“We must look at it through this context because it is very obvious there is a sort of political line behind this policy. That line is maintaining Zionist funding and saving face for these universities,” he said.
George said that not only is agitation around Palestine going to be affected by this proposal, but other issues related to LGBTQ+ groups could rise as well with the lack of cheap resources like chalk or yard signs on campus for activism at UofL.
“A lot of RSOs use this policy not just with regards to Palestine, but other organizations like LGBTQ+ organizations use this to agitate around SB 150, which is a very homophobic and transphobic bill in the Kentucky Senate,” he said. “Last year, groups used chalking advertise and agitate around this. I think that is pushing home the message that it’s not just ‘Oh UofL is trying to clean up the environment or clean up the space.’ It is definitely more of a way to control an activist student body.”
Going forward, how will the ban of chalking and yard signs impact student life at UofL?
“I think you are going to see a campus culture already in decline continue to decline in activity,” George said. “It really just shows that UofL doesn’t care as much as they say they do about RSOs.”
There are many other parts in which the ban on chalking and yard signs will effect, as students put it, adding that there will be unintended consequences to the ban. For example, the Cardinal Cupboard, which provides free food for students who cannot afford it due to high costs of schooling and staying at the university's dorms, will not have the ability to give information about restocking since they formerly used chalk as an avenue to get information out about its cause.
“I think that one thing that was an oversight from the university was that chalking and yard signs are used by the faculty and staff,” said Emily, an 18-year-old Political Science and Pan-African Studies major at the university. “They are used by campus resources like the cultural center and the Cardinal Cupboard, two places that do so much for students on campus.”
She said that many people, including staff on campus, come to the Cardinal Cupboard to get supplies and food, and now there is one less way to get important information about things like restocks to those people.
“That is one of the only ways that some of these people get food for the week,” Emily said. “I think it’s a disgrace that the university doesn’t think about things like that.”
Emily added more to the unforeseen consequences of such a rule, saying that student elections would also be heavily affected by the ban of yard signs, which are used to spread awareness of who is running for office, and gaining student interest in student government.
“With our student government association, yard signs are used during the election season,” she said. “That’s one of the main forms of campaigning on campus. Whoever is elected as the president for the academic year has a spot on the board of trustees. They are supposed to be our student representative. The university knows that yard signs are a main means of communication for election season and the fact that they are trying to remove it, makes students less aware of who their candidates are. It says a lot about what they’re trying to keep from us.”
What happens now?
As the national conversation on the Palestine-Israel war grows from younger, college age groups across the nation, the shift to allow cities to outlaw sleeping and camping in public spaces from a 6-3 Supreme Court decision was a major blow to organizers who use encampments as a way of protesting overnight, and staying on campuses longer to continue to agitate for what they are fighting for.
“I think they are not trying to change the means in which we protest, but shut down protests altogether,” Thomas said. “We see this with bills being passed in Frankfort, almost as if they are directly targeting Palestine, organizing with their banning of overnight camps on public property. It’s almost a direct attack with these encampments across the country.”
Thomas said the main issue comes down to money, and that optics leads the way over significant change with regard to how the university reacts to the US’ intervention in the Israel-Palestine war.
“You ask yourself: ‘Why wouldn’t they (the university) ban organizations’ ability to rent rooms on campus?’ Because those can be hidden away in rooms. You can walk past those buildings. You can walk past those doors,” Thomas said. “The thing about chalking is that it is so visible, everyone sees it. That’s directly going against the university’s interests…”
In a statement obtained by LEO Weekly, the university stated that its goals are not to keep voices unheard, but to keep the campus “welcoming and vibrant.”
“The University of Louisville is committed to fostering a welcoming and vibrant campus environment. We have developed and are reviewing feedback from various stakeholders on a proposed policy to streamline on-campus signage. This policy aims to create a more aesthetically pleasing environment and improve campus wayfinding.
UofL is a diverse academic community with well-established values regarding freedom of speech.”
Amanda Carroll, the media relations specialist part of the Office of Communications and Marketing at UofL, said that comments have been closed since Friday, July 12, and reiterated that the university is currently reviewing all feedback given from various stakeholders in regards to the proposal.
Classes begin on Monday, Aug. 19, with no set date for a vote on the proposal from the board.
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