The Right State

The University of California-Santa Cruz has been in the news of late because of the actions of students protesting military recruiters at the annual job fair. I noted the the actions of these spoiled brats here. UCSC’s picturesque campus is located in Santa Cruz with a population of 15,000 students. But all is not well in La La Land. The University does not even follow its own rules or handbook. According to their own Principles of Community, UCSC believes in a free exchange of ideas, mutual respect, the advancement of knowledge, due process, respect for individual dignity, and equitable access to resources. When the students blocked the access to the military recruiters, they were not keeping with any of their purported principles. If these students want to act stupid, I say, go ahead and act stupid. But there should be consequences for their actions.

Students need to be held responsible for their behavior. According to the UCSC handbook the university allows students to exercise their right to free speech, but only as long as their free speech does not interfere with school functions.

30.30 The time, place, and manner of exercising the constitutionally protected rights of free expression, speech, assembly, and worship are subject to campus regulations that shall provide for non-interference with university functions and reasonable protection to persons against practices that would make them involuntary audiences or place them in reasonable fear, as determined by the university, for their personal safety. (Emphasis added)

Further on the handbook states:

40.40 On university grounds open to the public generally, as may be described in campus regulations, all persons may exercise the constitutionally protected rights of free expression, speech, assembly, worship (including the distribution or sale of noncommercial literature incidental to the exercise of these freedoms). Such activities shall not interfere with the orderly operation of the campus and must be conducted in accordance with campus time, place, and manner regulations. (Emphasis added)

A job fair is university sponsored event and function. The students interfered with that function, so they should be held accountable.

The consequences of not following the handbook are also listed.

0.20 All persons on university property are required to abide by university policies and campus regulations and shall identify themselves upon request to university officials acting in the performance of their duties. Violation of university policies or campus regulations may subject a person to possible legal penalties; if the person is a student, faculty member, or staff member of the university, that person may also be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with university policies and campus implementing regulations.

It looks like to me that the university administration by their actions or inactions did not follow their own handbook. As a result, there should be consequences for the university’s behavior as well. So, what I want to know is, did the university encourage any of these protests? If they didn’t, then did their lack of action cause access to the recruiters to be denied? The Solomon Amendment is very specific about what it considers as violations relating to the access of students.

(b) Denial of Funds for Preventing Military Recruiting on Campus.–

No funds described in subsection (d)(2) may be provided by contract or by grant (including a grant of funds to be available for student aid) to an institution of higher education (including any subelement of such institution) if the Secretary of Defense determines that that institution (or any subelement of that institution) has a policy or practice (regardless of when implemented) that either prohibits, or in effect prevents–

(1) the Secretary of a military department or Secretary of Transportation from gaining entry to campuses, or access to students (who are 17 years of age or older) on campuses, for purposes of military recruiting; or

(2) access by military recruiters for purposes of military recruiting to the following information pertaining to students (who are 17 years of age or older) enrolled at that institution (or any subelement of that institution):

The amendment is fairly clear. If the institution by practice or actions prevents military recruiters from visiting with potential students, funds are denied. (Emphasis added)

Its time that students learn there are consequences for their actions. They have had the sheltered existence of living at home, and now they are living in the real world. (If you can call USCS the real world) Actions have costs. Either the students pony up, or the university does under the Solomon Amendment. Its time to grow up children.

Update: Michelle Malkin has more including a call for Donald Rumsfeld to invoke the Solomon Amendment since UCSC is creating an environment hostile to military recruiters.

As I noted earlier today, UC Santa Cruz–which allowed radical, anti-troop punks to force military recruiters off campus–received a reported $80 million in federal funding last year alone. My friend William Perry Pendley sends word that his organization, the Mountain States Legal Foundation, has formally requested that tax money be cut off from the school for its violation of the Solomon Amendment

Tags: Culture //