Wasserman Schultz rips student protestors’ punishment in letter to FIU president

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Weston, has called on Florida International University to rescind charges against seven students who engaged in a silent protest.

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In a letter to FIU President Jeanette M. Nuñez on Tuesday, Wasserman Schultz condemned the students’ punishment, saying it impeded on their constitutional right to protest.

“The recent penalization is a grave violation of First Amendment free-speech protections,” Wasserman Schultz said in a letter to Nuñez.

“FIU’s actions set up a dangerous precedent and will have a chilling effect on students’ ability to freely express themselves and their ideas—a bedrock tenet of our free and democratic society, as enshrined in our Constitution, particularly in a university environment.”

READ MORE: FIU moves to discipline 7 students for ‘indoor’ silent protest on immigration policies

The seven students silently walked into a “fireside chat” hosted by Nuñez in March wearing shirts that said “ICE OFF FIU” in response to the university’s arrangement with Immigration Customs and Enforcement, before quickly leaving the event. The university ordered students to record videos explaining which policies they violated as punishment for their protest.

The videos need to be “original” and “thoughtful,” and the school can make students record the video over and over again. Wasserman Schultz said this punishment even further violates these students’ First Amendment rights.

“Responding to the violation of a protected First Amendment expression with a further violation is an unacceptable form of disciplinary action,” said Wasserman Schultz. “The university’s actions send a clear message to students that free expression will be silenced if it is convenient for the university, and that they must fall in line or suffer the consequences.”

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Even after the students enlisted civil rights group Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) to defend their case, the university still defended the punishments under their ban on “expressive conduct” indoors. FIU administration argued that the policy served to minimize disruptions to university operations.

Wasserman Schultz called the defense “disingenuous,” especially after Jehnny Rivera, FIU’s executive director of the Office of University Protocol, Ceremonies and Events, told an investigating officer that the protest did not disrupt the event, or other university operations.

“University regulations plainly serve to prevent disruption of the learning environment. It is disingenuous to suggest that the seven students standing up to display the message on their shirts is ‘materially and substantially’ disruptive to normal university operations,” said Wasserman Schultz.

READ MORE: Civil rights group offers support to FIU students facing discipline for silent protest

She also said she worries that this punishment sets a concerning precedent to students. Not only do the charges discourage students from sharing their opinions, but the university is impeding on the education of their own students, she said.

“This presents a clear disincentive for students to voice controversial, unpopular or divisive opinions, which is both a right and an important part of the education process,” said Wasserman Schultz. “As a public university supported by federal funding and entrusted with advancing the education of our students, FIU has a responsibility to uphold students’ First Amendment rights.”

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