Chicago, Illinois : Once again, “woke” students in positions of authority are abusing their power and censoring conservative and libertarian views. This time, the censorship comes from the Student Government Association (SGA) at Illinois Tech. SLF sent a letter to the Illinois Tech administration today encouraging them to rein in their runaway SGA.
When conservative and libertarian students decided to start a group on campus, they went through the typical procedures that included filing a petition and appearing before the SGA. But when they arrived at the SGA meeting, they were immediately put on the defensive. Members of SGA accused the group of promoting racism and rejected the petition.
But the problems did not end there. The entire student body began threatening and harassing the conservative and libertarian students. Although SGA “vowed” to investigate the threats, nothing ever happened. The students were left without a single advocate or representative fighting for them on their own student government.
What can be done to curb such abuses of power? The answer may be found in an unexpected ally: college administrators.
“In the past, the worst free speech violations came from administrators,” says SLF attorney Cece O’Leary. “But now that the woke mob is poisoning every aspect of college life, administrators are starting to wake up and stand their ground.” In its letter to Illinois Tech, SLF urged the administration to have clearer guidelines and appeals processes in place to curb SGA. For example, SGA should only be allowed to reject a student group for procedural issues, like an incomplete application. And if SGA abuses its power, there must be administrative channels for students to appeal its decision.
“We urge Illinois Tech to take this matter seriously,” O’Leary warns. “If they don’t, SGA will simply see it as a green light for groupthink.”
SLF continues to monitor the situation on behalf of the conservative students.