Sacramento City College Crushes Student’s Free Speech

**UDPATE** 11/9/09

For Constitution Day this year at Sacramento City College Associated Student Government (ASG) President and student Steve Macias arranged for a group named Genocide Awareness Project, an anti-abortion group, to participate on campus in the Constitution Day activities.

The group was approved for participation by the ASG and set up its booth at the appointed time. And then the world came to an end. Pro-Infanticide groups such as Planned Parenthood set up their own, countering booths the next day and left-wing hatemongers in the student body immediately began to circulate a recall petition to have Mr. Macias removed from the Associated Student Government leadership.

There is also some speculation that this insane, un-American recall effort being visited upon Mr. Macias is being tacitly approved of by the College adviser overseeing the ASG.

Even the local press tried to pile onto an attack of Mr. Macias. The SacCity Express originally reported on October 13 that Macias presented the anti-abortion group under a false name when he submitted the group for the vote of the ASG board. On the 26th the paper printed a retraction admitting their "mistake."

On his FaceBook site, Mr. Macias also reports that one of Sacramento College's professors has engaged in a nasty email exchange with the student, too. "Why Do these teachers feel that it is there role to put us students down?" Macias asks. "I am deeply offended that an instutution that taxpayers pay for and pay to attend would allow this individual to clearly descriminate against people of faith. Calling Christianity 'make believe.' is unacceptable dialougue from Teacher to student. Especially when you seek out and attack the student."

Amusingly, with her quote on the matter, ASG Vice President Debbie Dixon proved that her parent's money is being sorrowfully wasted on her failed education.

“I am highly offended, I have rights, just as they have rights to not be offended!”

Sorry Debbie, dear, but there is NO "right" not to be offended. The Constitution safeguards political free speech but it does not safeguard your right "not to be offended." No one has a right not to be offended because such a right would preclude everyone else's right to free speech in the first place. After all, what one person feels is right and good to say someone else somewhere will find offense contained therein. So, dear, dear, lil' Debbie, no one has a right not to be offended. But, I do have to say, I am offended by your ignorance.

So, what we see with this dispiriting case is typical of the distempered left. All these caring, civilized, open minded, more tolerant lefties are in full attack mode trying to shut down the free speech of people with whom they disagree... as always. Sadly, that's the fascist, Obamaesque sort of actions we are coming to expect from the extreme left and the bubble ensconced, pointy-headed, ivory tower dwellers in academe, isn't it?

**UDPATE** 11/9/09

College launches attack campaign on student body president over pro-life group’s display

ADF letter: student officer was simply respecting group’s constitutional rights

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund Center for Academic Freedom have issued a cease-and-desist letter to Sacramento City College officials after the president of the Associated Student Government was subjected to an illegal recall election for refusing to censor a pro-life group on campus.

College officials targeted Steve Macias for retaliation after they attempted to censor the speech of an off-campus pro-life group that ASG had already voted to allow to participate in a campus event. Macias refused to censor the pro-life display on the grounds that doing so would violate the group’s First Amendment rights. The officials and ASG retaliated by subjecting him to an illegal recall election.

Full news release, quotes, and related media resources available at the following link:

http://www.adfmedia.org/News/PRDetail/3397

ADF is a legal alliance of Christian attorneys and like-minded organizations defending the right of people to freely live out their faith. Launched in 1994, ADF employs a unique combination of strategy, training, funding, and litigation to protect and preserve religious liberty, the sanctity of life, marriage, and the family.

mightysamurai

Universities and colleges are notorious for their liberal tendencies so wth do you expect?

What do I expect? I expect you idiots to NOT be massive hypocrites. You talk about the sanctity of free speech all the time. In fact you often style yourselves as "crusaders" for free speech. You support organizations like the ACLU that claim to be about nothing else but protecting basic civil liberties. Yet the moment someone expresses an opinion that disagrees with the standard liberal orthodoxy you come down on him and try to punish him for daring (daring I say!) to disagree with you.

Is it really too much to ask that liberals actually abide by the values they claim to hold?

I've seen plenty of times when liberal posters here have said something and have been attacked, maligned and pretty much told to stfu.
Is that your idea of free speech?

YES!

My God, what a moronic question!

OF COURSE that is free speech. Just because you have the right to speak your mind doesn't mean I don't have the right to tell you to shove it. That IS freedom of speech. BOTH OF US have the right to tell the other to go fuck himself.

Why do liberals have such a hard time grasping this concept? Just because I criticize you doesn't mean I am abridging your freedom of speech.
Christopher_Taylor

Sure will without qualification.

I knew you would. You're a believer in liberty even if sometimes you don't see how its under assault.
libliever

Mighty, you're right.

Nonetheless the fact is a conservative POV was expressed on a liberal campus which is no small feat.
Universities and colleges are notorious for their liberal tendencies so wth do you expect?
Placidity and decorum from a bunch of college kids?
I've seen plenty of times when liberal posters here have said something and have been attacked, maligned and pretty much told to stfu.
Is that your idea of free speech?
Now, if the GAP was shut down and run off campus then that would have been different but that didn't happen and so what if people tried to do that so what?
Those that believed in the Constitution on that campus prevailed.
mightysamurai

The fact is that Mr. Macias was allowed to have his group come and talk

Yeah, after large amounts of negative publicity was brought upon the college for their despicable attempt to crush a man's freedom of speech.

Face it. Liberals tried to kill free speech. The fact that they failed hardly erases the fact that they tried.
libliever

"I'm sure the leftists posting here will all stand with me condemning that activity."

Posted by Christopher_Taylor

Sure will without qualification.
Christopher_Taylor

I agree, no one's expression of their right to free speech was, in fact, restricted. There was a plain and repeated attempt to do so, the man was slandered, and there were attempts to silence his movement, but free speech eventually, despite blatant efforts to repeatedly stop it, reigned supreme.

I'm sure the leftists posting here will all stand with me condemning that activity.
whats_up

Steve Macias, in his capacity as Student Body President, approved a pro-life display by the Genocide Awareness Project. In response, leftists on campus are attempting to have him recalled from his position. Does that sound like "support for freedom of speech" to you? No, don't answer that. It probably does sound like it to you.

A man is being punished for not prohibiting political expression the left disagrees with, and yet somehow, in your tiny brain, this is somehow not crushing this man's freedom of speech.
Posted by mightysamurai
2009-10-30 11:51:55

And they have every right to try and recall him from his postition Mighty, that is how the American system works. The fact is that Mr. Macias was allowed to have his group come and talk, they werent denied their free speech.
mightysamurai

Who would that be mighty?

As usual, Whats_up refuses to actually read the article.

I'm actually surprised at you, Whats_up. And that's significant because I didn't think I could ever be surprised by the depths to which you would sink.

Steve Macias, in his capacity as Student Body President, approved a pro-life display by the Genocide Awareness Project. In response, leftists on campus are attempting to have him recalled from his position. Does that sound like "support for freedom of speech" to you? No, don't answer that. It probably does sound like it to you.

A man is being punished for not prohibiting political expression the left disagrees with, and yet somehow, in your tiny brain, this is somehow not crushing this man's freedom of speech.
Campus_Reform

Thank you for posting this article. Stories such as Steve Macias' experience are far too common at colleges and universities throughout the US. This is exactly why CampusReform.org was started by the Leadership Institute.

The only way to fight back is to highlight these stories and draw attention to them. Until exposed, colleges will continue to trample on the rights of college students, especially conservative ones.

If you have experienced free speech abuses like Steve, please let us know at CampusReform.org.

Throughout October, we had a "Report a Leftist Abuse" contest, and awarded $100 to the student with the best (meaning worst) abuse. You can see all of the abuses here.

They happen at public and private schools, Ivy League and community colleges. Professors, administrators and other students are guilty of shutting down debate and ensuring that only one political viewpoint is represented.

Until students, parents and alumni start exposing these stories, our higher education system will continue to quiet free speech when the speech isn't to their liking.
whats_up

Posted by tblrk2006
2009-10-30 08:27:33

Again please tell me who was "silenced" here. No group was forced to take down a display or denied the ability to talk, exactly who's free speech was crushed? According to every link provided in this article, NO ONE's free speech was denied.
whats_up

Well, except for, y'know, the people whose free speech was crushed.
Posted by mightysamurai
2009-10-30 10:13:30

Who would that be mighty? No where in the article or any other link listed was anyone denied the right to free speech, no one.
mightysamurai

First, wasn't the group allowed to stay after all the brouhaha.

So that makes it okay somehow? I suppose if I said "Well, black people were given their civil rights after 'all that brouhaha' anyway, so what's the big deal about Jim Crow?" you'd agree with that?

no one's free speech was actually crushed

Well, except for, y'know, the people whose free speech was crushed.
bthewolf

Posted by whats_up
2009-10-30 01:51:51

Problem is WU, lib's link is not the WHOLE story, he kinda failed to look at the info about professors send him emails that were completely uncalled for: On his FaceBook site, Mr. Macias also reports that one of Sacramento College’s professors has engaged in a nasty email exchange with the student, too. “Why Do these teachers feel that it is there role to put us students down?” Macias asks. “I am deeply offended that an instutution that taxpayers pay for and pay to attend would allow this individual to clearly descriminate against people of faith. Calling Christianity ‘make believe.’ is unacceptable dialougue from Teacher to student. Especially when you seek out and attack the student.” Follow ALL the links and you see there more to the story just news piece.
tblrk2006

So let me get this straight, no one's free speech was actually crushed, got it. Last time I checked recall efforts were very American, happening in almost every state. Interesting take on the American system, people protested, hmm sounds American to me.
Posted by whats_up
2009-10-30 01:51:51

Wow....so efforts to recall peoples free speach demonstrations are happening all the time and are american? You and your fellow liberals seem to have all the freedom you want to practice your free speach, but when its a conservative we get attacked, silenced, pie tossed, and called nazis. I guess some free speach is more free than others.
whats_up

So let me get this straight, no one's free speech was actually crushed, got it. Last time I checked recall efforts were very American, happening in almost every state. Interesting take on the American system, people protested, hmm sounds American to me.
libliever

First, wasn't the group allowed to stay after all the brouhaha.

http://saccityexpress.com/2009/09/28/constituti...

Deluz emphasized the importance of the Constitution after the above brouhaha and GAP's posters stayed. In fact Deluz used the whole controversy as a lesson in how important our rights are.
As long as GAP's posters and booths etc were not destroyed I see no story here other than people on both sides of the issue getting a little heated up.
Dixon needs to grow up.
Christopher_Taylor

What's happening here is what can be done about it: expose it to the light of day, spread the word, and apply social pressure and shame to the people responsible.
tazzmax

Being a Resident of Sac, this really pisses me off, but I don't know what can be done about it except to do like everybody else does,...sue, sue, sue!

This is outrageous, but it just goes to show that this denial of freedom of speech is "par for th course" in colleges across the country.

Wake up America,....if it isn't too late.
Christopher_Taylor

Some free speech is more equal than others.
tblrk2006

B/C saving a life is SOOOO offensive.
Ralph_Gizzip

If I had a "right not to be offended," Liberals would all have to be strapped into those "Hannibal Lecter" restraining couches, with masks.

Posted by CavalierX

One can dream, Cav. One can dream.
CavalierX

If I had a "right not to be offended," Liberals would all have to be strapped into those "Hannibal Lecter" restraining couches, with masks.