Campus Reform: Florida Atlantic University

As students flocked to the school for the start of the fall semester at  Florida Atlantic University (FAU), the Florida Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) were denied the right to exercise their first amendment rights to “freedom of speech” and to “peaceably assemble” AGAIN!

A group of current students and FAU alumni were handing out informational material and informing students of the YAF purpose and to bring a conservative dialogue to the University campus. Within thirty minutes and without hesitation once again, an administrator told the students to leave. What soon followed was a barrage of police and university administrators essentially telling the students that it was their way or the highway, completely ignoring their constitutional rights. The entire incident was caught on tape by the Florida YAF State Chairman, Daniel P. Diaz.

"It's an absolute shame that an institute of higher learning would impede on our constitutional rights as students. It is a direct reflection of today's liberal political atmosphere; instead of encouraging the students to express themselves freely, we were discouraged by bureaucratic red tape," said Walter "Marty" Hughes, Chairman of the FAU Broward YAF chapter.

This was the second time in a little more than six months that the same university has denied students the right to organize a YAF chapter.

On March 3, 2010, Florida YAF was denied the right to assemble and organize on the FAU Campus. Florida YAF State Chairman Daniel P. Diaz was accused of trespassing and was almost arrested after holding an informational meeting to discuss the ideas and purpose of the group. The story created a firestorm on the internet, amongst the radio waves and finally the Tea Party movement. Following this initial incident a public outrage of phone calls and emails led university officials, including that the dean of students,  to contact the state chairman and asked him to "call off your dogs," adding that "we [FAU] will work with you and start a chapter."

"We will fight for freedom of ideas on every campus in the state. This type of attitude towards students and non-students is typical on campuses across the country. Leftist administrators believe that the Constitution does not exist and that university policy trumps the Constitution on public universities," said Florida YAF State Chairman Daniel P. Diaz.