How Free Speech Is Not For All, To Be or Not To Be

The Challenging Words With a Student That Lead to a Professor Being Placed On Leave

The First Amendment guarantees freedoms concerning religion, expression, assembly, and the right to petition. Today, freedom of speech is on the verge of being sanctioned by many who possess a hidden agenda to suppress or deny. An article in the newspaper expressed how one adjunct professor freedom of speech is being denied while her student gets to voice his opinion with an outside supporter coming to the rescue voicing very harsh words against educational institutions that appear to restrict freedom of speech.

In a classroom, not only is free speech important but respect for authority is equally important. Also, it is not what you say that matters but how you say what you say that matters. Not being privy to the altercation between this professor and student, no comment can be stated in the defense of either. There is an old saying, “There is his story, her story and the truth.”

Orange County has been a hotbed of racism and suppression of people of color while much has changed there is always a few pockets here and there that are always festering.

Due to a confrontation between the Cypress College adjunct professor and a student, this professor has now found oneself on leave until the end of the class term while this student appears to be some hero as he challenged the professor. Really? Whose the teacher? Where’s the respect?

From a third party perspective, this adjunct professor challenged a student who praised the police as heroes during a recorded Zoom class as it went viral. The word, challenge, is that bad? Was the challenging done with respect to inform? or Was the praise for the police a trigger to elicit a confrontation?

Giving the alarming rate of all the murders nationwide at the hand of police officers, is this the perfect time to praise a force that demands being reckoned with? While, all police officers are not ill-trained and have a hidden agenda, but the fact remains there are too many killing people of color at an arising and devastating rate.

A nineteen year old student was in the middle of sharing his presentation with his classmates that “cops are heroes, and they …have a difficult job,” as the professor interrupted to ask: “All of them?” The student: “A good majority of them.” Perhaps, this student lived in a bubble and some people do. These people see the world through different lenses and oftentimes may need to be educated. On the heels of the students’ words, the professor shared her insight, A lot of police officers have committed atrocious crimes and have gotten away with it, and have never been convicted of any of it, and “I say this as a person who has family members who are police officers.”

Okay, the professor gave her viewpoint providing a different aspect based on her family members being on the police force. She has first hand knowledge from whence she spokes. What about this student? Did he have a hidden agenda?

While the student proclaimed that everyone calls the police when in trouble, the professor responded that calling the police was not an option because she feared them and that her life would be in more danger in their presence. What is wrong with stating how one feels based on first hand knowledge of how an entity has performed in the past and the recent present. As the professor was pressed about who would be call during trouble times, the professor responded: “I wouldn’t call anybody.”

Is this it? The professor was relived of her job because of this exchange. Really people? The world has bigger fish to fry right now! There are problems in society and most notable, racism, and it is more visible than ever. This professor whose job was to teach academically and otherwise with respect, has now been relived due to free speech and was released pending the investigation of the recording. The professor is guilty until proven innocent. Wow, really? This was the professor’s first class at the college, everyone knows that new instructors sometimes easily become targets by students of this sort.

While this freshmen student was giving or finishing his presentation, “cancel culture”, the professor stated: “policing was a system to capture runaway slaves in the South”. Sometimes the truth hurts but so does ignorance. However the student concluded, “This is what I believe. This is my opinion. This is not popular to say, but I do support our police, we have bad people, and the people that do bad things should be brought to justice. I agree with that.”

Okay, sounds like there was a meeting of the minds. What is all this uproar about? People are dying everyday worldwide due to the pandemic and systemic racism. Why not take all this energy and be a catalyst for change and not division. The student, the professor and Cypress College could have made this a teachable moment for the world and not a punitive opportunity to perpetuate a particular behavior, good or bad. Also, the student made his point and so did the professor. I am missing something here.

Cypress College stated, “Cypress takes great pride in fostering a learning environment for students where ideas and opinions are exchanged as a vital piece of the educational journey. “Our community fully embraces this culture; students often defend one another’s rights to express themselves freely, even when opinions differ,” the school said. “Any efforts to suppress free and respectful expression on our campus will not be tolerated.”

While Cypress College support of its student free speech is noteworthy but where does the professor stand in this equation?

According to the newspaper, one of the police union’s officer chimed in responding to the video via twitter: “Too many of America’s universities have become indoctrination farms where critical thinking and ingenuity are stifled by the intolerance of simple minded professors like these who are completely unwilling to accept anything but their own opinion as fact.” These words spoke for themselves. Words do matter and are indicative of the deliverer. The student, and a police union officer gets to share but this professor looses the job because of sharing. Free speech is not free speech unless all share the same privilege.

In conclusion, a day of reckoning for much injustice is due and no matter what happens today, justice will come tomorrow. What is good for the goose is good for the gander.

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