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UI prof arrested for SFC incident
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<blockquote data-quote="champaignchris" data-source="post: 1370757" data-attributes="member: 26283"><p>That article brings up an issue that I don't think is getting enough coverage.</p><p></p><p>All three incidents mentioned in the Trib article concern U of I faculty (state employees) harassing, impeding, and otherwise attempting to shut down 1st Amendment activities - expression, free speech and assembly - of private citizens. If those state employees were doing so "under cover of state statute" (42 USC ss 1983), that opens them and the University up to civil lawsuits.</p><p></p><p>Whether the anti-chief faculty are operating under cover of state authority is a really murky question. Take Rosenstein. He's presumably acting as a private citizen as he makes his documentary. But if the U of I uses his status as filmmaker to promote the school or uses his "published" films to evaluate Rosenstein for compensation, retention, raises, tenure, etc., that opens up a huge can of worms. </p><p></p><p>I think the most problematic incident in this regard came last fall with the story about the "War Chant" being retired. </p><p></p><p>On August 24, 2017, "Athletic department representatives asked members of the student group Illini Pride to stop playing the song on a drum at a soccer game." <a href="http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/08/25/war-chant-will-no-longer-be-played-at-university-of-illinois-sporting-events/" target="_blank">http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/08/25/war-chant-will-no-longer-be-played-at-university-of-illinois-sporting-events/</a></p><p></p><p>So that's a government employee telling a group of students they can't bang on drums and sing a song - fairly clearly covered under the 1st Amendment's freedom of expression. <a href="http://www.news-gazette.com/sports/illini-sports/baseball/2017-08-25/war-chant-decision-works-more-year.html" target="_blank">In an interview the very next day</a>, Kent Brown, Illinois' SID said, "[DIA O]fficials can’t stop fans from doing the war chant on their own because it is a free speech issue."</p><p></p><p>U of I might have some sort of legal leeway there because Illini Pride is an officially recognized student group, but I'm not sure the rationale. You don't give up your First Amendment rights just because you join a student group. Maybe those students sign some sort of contractual agreement requiring them to behave a certain way at games to participate in the student group, but even then I don't think it's all that cut and dry. </p><p></p><p>My overall point is the U of I has to do a pretty major balancing act to make sure it's not exposing itself to civil liability for denying Chief supporters' civil rights when U of I employees are acting - on University property and at University events - to prevent the Chief supporters from engaging in those very rights. It seems to me like a major lawsuit is almost inevitable. It's an issue I'm sure the University administration would love to just go away. Unfortunately, they've been catastrophically inept at making it go away.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="champaignchris, post: 1370757, member: 26283"] That article brings up an issue that I don't think is getting enough coverage. All three incidents mentioned in the Trib article concern U of I faculty (state employees) harassing, impeding, and otherwise attempting to shut down 1st Amendment activities - expression, free speech and assembly - of private citizens. If those state employees were doing so "under cover of state statute" (42 USC ss 1983), that opens them and the University up to civil lawsuits. Whether the anti-chief faculty are operating under cover of state authority is a really murky question. Take Rosenstein. He's presumably acting as a private citizen as he makes his documentary. But if the U of I uses his status as filmmaker to promote the school or uses his "published" films to evaluate Rosenstein for compensation, retention, raises, tenure, etc., that opens up a huge can of worms. I think the most problematic incident in this regard came last fall with the story about the "War Chant" being retired. On August 24, 2017, "Athletic department representatives asked members of the student group Illini Pride to stop playing the song on a drum at a soccer game." [URL="http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/08/25/war-chant-will-no-longer-be-played-at-university-of-illinois-sporting-events/"]http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2017/08/25/war-chant-will-no-longer-be-played-at-university-of-illinois-sporting-events/[/URL] So that's a government employee telling a group of students they can't bang on drums and sing a song - fairly clearly covered under the 1st Amendment's freedom of expression. [URL="http://www.news-gazette.com/sports/illini-sports/baseball/2017-08-25/war-chant-decision-works-more-year.html"]In an interview the very next day[/URL], Kent Brown, Illinois' SID said, "[DIA O]fficials can’t stop fans from doing the war chant on their own because it is a free speech issue." U of I might have some sort of legal leeway there because Illini Pride is an officially recognized student group, but I'm not sure the rationale. You don't give up your First Amendment rights just because you join a student group. Maybe those students sign some sort of contractual agreement requiring them to behave a certain way at games to participate in the student group, but even then I don't think it's all that cut and dry. My overall point is the U of I has to do a pretty major balancing act to make sure it's not exposing itself to civil liability for denying Chief supporters' civil rights when U of I employees are acting - on University property and at University events - to prevent the Chief supporters from engaging in those very rights. It seems to me like a major lawsuit is almost inevitable. It's an issue I'm sure the University administration would love to just go away. Unfortunately, they've been catastrophically inept at making it go away. [/QUOTE]
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UI prof arrested for SFC incident
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