On Feb. 3, over 100 Queens College students, faculty and staff protested a policy change that regulates demonstrations held at the campus. The new protocol is one of many in a CUNY-wide shift in regulation on protests, which collectively serve as a restriction on campus expression that harms the community’s right to demonstrate freely.
The protest, organized by the Professional Staff Congress of CUNY, began at Kiely Hall. The union delivered a petition in opposition of the policy to Queens College President Frank Wu, before leading a march around the Queens College campus to historical locations of previous protests that would now be barred from demonstrations under the new policy.
The interim policy, issued in December, sets limits on the time, place and manner of campus demonstrations. It details strict guidelines on permitted protest locations, noise level limits, time constraints for demonstration and more. It also emphasizes that organizers must submit a request to schedule a protest before it is set to take place.
Similar protocols on demonstrations were introduced around the same time throughout the CUNY system. For example, Baruch College’s Free Expression and Demonstration Policy outlines that demonstrations may only be conducted within the Clivner=Field Plaza, which must be reserved in advance through the Office of Student Life, despite being a public space.
While regulations on time, place and manner create limitations on protest conduct regardless of the content of its message, the new policy requiring prior approval from administration before conducting a protest is unconstitutional and directly conflicts with the First Amendment’s protection of free speech.
Additionally, many of the regulations carry the possibility of discrimination against protestors. One rule states that demonstrators may be requested to remove their face coverings. This completely undermines other legitimate reasons for students to wear face coverings, such as the protection of personal health or religious beliefs. Similarly, the three-hour limit to the duration of protests bars those with schedule conflicts from participating.
These restrictions suppress the right of students and faculty to demonstrate freely, openly and at any time. CUNY colleges must further revise these policies to respect the freedoms of their student bodies, faculty and staff, and encourage active participation in their community through demonstration.
