{"id":167000,"date":"2017-06-02T17:15:00","date_gmt":"2017-06-02T21:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.liveaction.org\/news\/?p=167000"},"modified":"2017-06-02T17:15:00","modified_gmt":"2017-06-02T21:15:00","slug":"colorado-state-university-settles-free-speech-lawsuit-with-students-for-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/colorado-state-university-settles-free-speech-lawsuit-with-students-for-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Colorado State University settles free speech lawsuit with Students for Life"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

Earlier this year, Live Action News reported<\/a> on a free speech lawsuit filed by the Colorado State University campus\u00a0chapter of Students for Life of America. The university had\u00a0denied diversity grant funding to the SFLA group when they applied to bring in pro-life speaker Josh Brahm, due to Brahm not being “entirely unbiased.” Students for Life was told that their funding request would not be granted, as\u00a0some people\u00a0\u201cwon\u2019t necessarily feel affirmed in attending the event.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Alliance Defending Freedom, the university\u00a0violated the rights of students, specifically those who are part of Students for Life, by forcing them to\u00a0pay into\u00a0the grant funding\u00a0\u2014 which supports viewpoints they oppose \u2014 without\u00a0allowing for them\u00a0to respond in kind. \u201cUniversity officials shouldn\u2019t use mandatory student fees to favor some views while shutting out others,\u201d said ADF senior counsel Tyson Langhofer.<\/p>\n

On Tuesday, the Denver Post<\/a> reported that the lawsuit has been settled, with the university agreeing to\u00a0adjust its policies and correct its unjust funding decision against Students for Life. In a news release, Alliance Defending Freedom explained that\u00a0Colorado State University\u00a0\u201chas agreed to drop unconstitutional policies that enabled university officials to deny a student organization\u2019s funding request strictly because of the group\u2019s pro-life views,\u201d as well as “overhaul its policies to ensure that all student groups will have equal access to mandatory student activity fees charged to all students.”<\/p>\n

Emily Faulkner, a 2017 CSU graduate, president of CSU Students for Life, and a plaintiff in the case, took to Facebook\u00a0to share that she thought the right outcome had been reached, “VERY proud that I was able to change a bad policy at my alma mater. #<\/span>ramsforfreespeech<\/span><\/a>.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Langhofer commended the university for changing course, stating that all students have the right to not be discriminated against because of\u00a0their particular viewpoint. A statement from the university acknowledged that a settlement has been reached and that the funding decision regarding Students for Life has been “corrected.” The university claims it was and continues to be “fully committed” to free expression of diverse viewpoints for all students.<\/p>\n

Cases such as this, which are sadly not isolated instances<\/a>, represent clear discrimination against pro-lifers.\u00a0On many college campuses, diversity is promoted — but suddenly forgotten when that diversity manifests in the form of students taking a stand for life. Students for Life and Alliance Defending Freedom deserve credit for standing up not only for life, but also for viewpoint diversity, and as Langhofer said, the university should be commended for correcting a very poor decision in this case.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Earlier this year, Live Action News reported on a free speech lawsuit filed by the Colorado State University campus\u00a0chapter of Students for Life of America. The university had\u00a0denied diversity grant funding to the SFLA group when they applied to bring in pro-life speaker Josh Brahm, due to Brahm not being “entirely unbiased.” Students for Life […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":307,"featured_media":68145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nColorado State University settles free speech lawsuit with Students for Life<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Students for Life and Alliance Defending Freedom deserve credit for standing up not only for life, but also for viewpoint diversity.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/archive.liveaction.org\/news\/colorado-state-university-settles-free-speech-lawsuit-with-students-for-life\/\" \/>\n<meta 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