Terrapins Get 'Green Light' for Complete Campus Freedom of Speech

The speech nazis lose a big one in liberal Maryland:

The University of Maryland (UMD) has eliminated all of its restrictive speech policies, earning the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education’s (FIRE’s) highest, “green light” rating. FIRE worked with UMD to revise its speech codes, and UMD now joins the prestigious group of colleges and universities that have reformed their policies on student and faculty expression to ensure compliance with the First Amendment.

“I am very excited about the addition of UMD to FIRE’s growing list of green light schools,” said Azhar Majeed, director of FIRE’s Individual Rights Education Program. “UMD already had a commendable approach to campus free speech before FIRE reached out. I’m thrilled that UMD has now revised its policies to reflect its practices, and I hope many more colleges and universities follow UMD’s lead this semester.”

FIRE wrote to UMD following the university’s appropriate handling of an incident that arose last spring involving a controversial student email. When FIRE began this collaborative effort, UMD maintained two policies earning a “yellow light” rating. Majeed advised UMD administrators about revising a policy concerning student rights and responsibilities as well as a policy on multicultural philosophy.

“The University of Maryland prides itself on our thriving environment of free speech and academic freedom for every member of our campus community,” said UMD Vice President of Student Affairs Linda Clement. “We are extremely proud to earn the highest, ‘green light’ rating from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.”

UMD becomes the 24th green light institution in FIRE’s Spotlight database of over 400 colleges and universities. Last year, six colleges and universities earned a green light rating, bringing the total to 23. FIRE hopes 2016 will see many more such conversions to green light status.

Dismantling the Leftist project for America means starting with the colleges and universities, and has to begin from the top down: firing “progressive” college presidents, retiring tenured “progressive” faculty and opening up the teaching ranks to real scholars instead of fifth-column cultural sappers. Which is why it must begin with something that’s like a crucifix to a vampire: unrestricted freedom of speech.