Resolution #:

Date Introduced: 11/17/2015

Resolution Denouncing the Anti-Free Speech Actions of the Students at Various
Colleges Across the Nation
Whereas the purpose of a university is to educate students, and;
Whereas true education is impossible without an environment where the free exchange
of ideas can flourish, and;
Whereas the free exchange of ideas requires students to confront serious, controversial,
and complex ideas, and;
Whereas discussion and debate of these ideas naturally leads to differing opinions, and;
Whereas some of these differing opinions are contrary to Truth, and;
Whereas Ashland University is committed to the principle that free inquiry will lead
students to Truth, and;
Whereas in that pursuit students are often forced to confront offensive ideas, and;
Whereas confronting these ideas is the only way for students to disprove them and, in
the process, develop into free thinking individuals, and;
Whereas truth is great and will prevail if left to itself[1], and;
Whereas Almighty God has created the mind free and manifested His supreme will that
free it shall remain by making it altogether insusceptible of restraint[2] and;
Whereas students at Yale University, The University of Missouri, Ithaca College,
Claremont McKenna College, Dartmouth College and many other institutions across the
country have been attempting to restrain free minds by repressing the right to free
speech, and;
Whereas the actions of those students protesting at these institutions are promoting the
belief that the way to combat controversial ideas is through force and restraint, not
through reason,
Therefore be it resolved that the students of Ashland University reaffirm the Universitys
commitment to the pursuit of Truth through free inquiry and the free exchange of ideas,
and;
Be it further resolved that this commitment extends especially to ideas of great
controversy, and;
Be it further resolved that the students of Ashland University denounce the actions of
students at Yale University, The University of Missouri, Ithaca College, Claremont
Mckenna College, Dartmouth College and any other institution, who are fighting against
free speech and open debate, and;
Be it further resolved, that the students of Ashland University denounce those in the
faculty and administration of these schools who have failed to stand against these
students and who have failed to stand up for University education guided by free inquiry
and reason.
Introduced by: Senators James Coyne, Josh Frey, Nicholas Bartulovic, and Dennis Clark
Co-Sponsored by: Senators Ivan Larson, Kelly Ranttila, Joey Barretta, Kayla Gowdy,
Naomi Sims, Reid Courtney, Maxton Miller, Colin Suffecool, Tara Marasco, AJ Thomas,
Brennan Kunkel
[1]
[2]

Thomas Jefferson: A Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom

Ibid.