Thomas Nelson Community College (TNCC) on Norfolk, Va. is the latest school to eliminate "free speech zones" on its campus.
Stemming from a lawsuit, the Associated Press reported, the Virginia Community College system has suspended its policy on student demonstrations. Christian Parks, an evangelical Christian student at TNCC, said campus police stopped him multiple times from preaching in a campus courtyard.
Both the school and Parks have asked the federal judge in Norfolk overseeing the case to delay the court proceedings until May 2, when the new policy can go into effect.
"Coast to coast, these kinds of restrictions on student speech are a widespread problem," David Hacker, Parks' attorney and member of the Christian legal advocacy organization Alliance Defending Freedom, told the AP.
Thanks to more than a decade of similar cases, Parks likely had the upper hand in filing his lawsuit. Last Sept., Modesto Junior College eliminated its campus free speech zones after a student sued the school for apprehending him for passing out copies of the U.S. Constitution.
Since 2002, when a civil liberties organization sued West Virginia University for its free speech zones, schools all over have seen similar lawsuits. Groups like the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) are advocates for free speech and other constitutional rights on college campuses.
According to the Virginian-Pilot, Parks is also seeking damages and legal fees, but the judge has yet to rule on that matter.
"We're very pleased that the other side seems to recognize that there are some flaws in the policy and is working with us to get those corrected," Travis Barham, another Alliance Defending Freedom attorney representing Parks, told the newspaper.
TNCC's old policy required students or school organizations to register an event four days prior to be able to put on a demonstration on campus. While the new policy and settlement is being worked out, TNCC students may speak freely anywhere on campus.
