Trump Combating Problem of College Campuses Silencing Conservative Speech

Freedom of speech is under assault on college campuses, with students using the fear of their safety or labeling opinions that differ from their own as hate speech in order to prevent conservatives from speaking or being invited, but the Trump administration is taking action to protect freedom of speech.

Political correctness gone awry

In a world that now seeks to create safe spaces and an hyper-exaggerated excuse of fear of one’s safety, conservative and religious viewpoints are being silenced, or even entirely forbidden from expressing their opinions that differ from those that don’t align with the liberal groupthink.

What is happening now is nothing other than censorship in an attempt to silence any form of dissent.

Even the American Bar Association has recognized the problem, publishing a series of articles that highlighting instances of speech discrimination that have occurred around the country.

Examples

• A student at Michigan State University complained that his roommate should not be allowed to watch a video of conservative and pro-life commentator Ben Shapiro. In fact, Ben Shapiro has been outright banned from speaking at many colleges and universities.
• Student protesters at Rutgers University complained until America’s first black female Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was pressured into backing out of delivering a commencement address.
• The president of Santa Monica College in Southern California deemed conservative talk to be “hate speech” and instructed students to report such speech to police.
• Students at California State University, Chico, complained about fear over their safety, when a Republican wanted to talk about gun policy.
• After students complained about the invitation of a conservative speaker at Middlebury College, the administration apologized and said it would prevent such speakers from ever being invited again.
• The executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union, an organization typically viewed as liberal, was even shut down by protesters at the College of William and Mary, simply because it supported the rights of white nationalists to demonstrate in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.

Trump to universities: Support free speech or lose federal research dollars

If there is one universal truth in America – it’s money talks. President Donald Trump understands this as well as anyone, and knew the best way to end discrimination against conservative speech at college campuses was to simply pressure these organizations in their paychecks.

“If they want our dollars, and we give it to them by the billions, they’ve got to allow people like Hayden … to speak,” Trump said while speaking at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) prior to signing an executive order.

Trump signs executive order to ensure free speech on campuses

On March 21, 2019, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order to ensure that college and universities are following free speech requirements that are already in place.

“If a college or university does not allow you to speak, we will not give them money. It’s that simple,” Trump said after signing the order into law.

Trump’s executive order directs 12 federal grant-making agencies to do the policing. These agencies will coordinate with the Office of Management and Budget, which will certify that any colleges receiving federal research funds are complying with existing federal law and regulations involving free academic inquiry.