The Volokh Conspiracy

Mostly law professors | Sometimes contrarian | Often libertarian | Always independent

Volokh Conspiracy

Petition to "Impose Further Disciplinary Actions" on University Students for TikTok Singalong

The students are at Florida International University, "Miami's first and only public research university."

|

Robert Shibley (FIRE) writes at InstaPundit:

THIS WOULD LITERALLY BE ILLEGAL: A petition demands that (the public) Florida International University "impose further disciplinary actions for use of racial slurs" on "three non-black FIU softball players using the n-word." (They were singing along with a rap song [Lil Donald's "Do Better" -EV].)  More than 750 signatures as of now. Maybe every single signer doesn't know that this would be illegal. More likely, though, this is just cancel culture feeling its oats—who needs law when you have power? Plus a bonus implication that your rights are determined by your skin color.

For more, see this article (PantherNOW (Jordan Coll)); I think the school's assigning the students a "social justice" for their video is likewise unconstitutional. For a court case on this general subject (holding that a public university couldn't constitutionally punish a fraternity for putting on a blackface skit), see Iota Xi Chapter v. George Mason Univ. (4th Cir. 1993).