Two Universities. Two Posters. One First Amendment Problem.

Public universities don’t get to pick which political viewpoints are safe to express. But administrators at two major universities are trying to do just that.

At the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, administrators treated the College Republicans’ pro-ICE political message like a civil rights violation. After the Illini Republicans — a registered student organization — posted a Instagram graphic supporting immigration enforcement on Jan. 28, UIUC announced the Title VI Office would conduct a review.

At Penn State, an anti-ICE poster discovered outside the student center on Jan. 29 sparked heated reactions across the ideological spectrum. When some people raised the call to identify and punish whoever created the poster, Penn State responded by condemning it and announcing that University Police and Public Safety were investigating.

These incidents are two sides of the same coin: administrators using official investigations to police protected political speech, in this case, on opposing sides of the immigration debate. 

Launching or announcing an investigation sends a clear warning to students: express the wrong opinion and you could be punished. That chills speech campus-wide and violates the First Amendment obligations public universities are required to uphold.

You don’t need to sympathize with either political stance taken — pro-ICE or anti-ICE — to defend the principles at stake. Political advocacy is at the core of the First Amendment, especially at a public university. America’s most pressing issues should be debated, not investigated into silence.

Join us in telling UIUC and Penn State to drop their sham investigations and reaffirm their commitments to upholding free expression — even when it’s controversial or unpopular.

Free speech makes free people — no matter what side you’re on.