Are Crackdowns on Campus Protests Violating Students' First Amendment Rights?

Are police crackdowns on pro-Palestine campus protests a violation of protesting students’ First Amendment rights?

From the Left: A First Amendment scholar wrote in The Atlantic (Left bias), “the government can’t silence speakers because of their beliefs, even—and perhaps especially—if those beliefs are unpopular or cause offense.” Despite this, “many of the crackdowns appear to be a direct reaction to the protesters’ views about Israel.” The writer reflected, “Students nationwide are watching how the adults who professed to care about free speech are responding under pressure. And they are learning that those adults don’t really mean what they say about the First Amendment.” He concluded, “You may think some of it veers into bigotry. The answer is to ignore it, mock it, debate it, even counterprotest it. But don’t call in the SWAT team.”

From the Right: The Wall Street Journal Editorial Board (Lean Right bias) argued the First Amendment is not boundless. Addressing the encampment at Columbia University, the board wrote, “As a private university, Columbia has the right to set its own rules on speech as part of a contract to teach or study at the school.” The board concluded, “Protesters also don’t have a ‘right’ to assemble on school property to disrupt the functioning of the university or intimidate students on the way to class.” The board added, “This new progressive embrace of free speech rings especially hollow after years of student and faculty attempts to ban conservative speakers from campus and punish students for alleged micro-aggressions.”