Letter to the Editor: 'UB Forward on free expression and student protests'

UB's protest policies have been a topic of conversation since May 2024, when fifteen people were arrested after university police called in outside law enforcement. The Faculty Senate passed a resolution denouncing police escalation. The administration revised its time, place, and manner policies over the summer. Mostly, the revisions were non-substantive. My goal is to change this. The substance of the protests aren't a concern here; UB should support students' rights to express whatever peaceful viewpoint they choose to. The problem is that UB utilized vague policies and excessive force to quash those students' voices. 

The revised policies have some mild improvements, such as removing the dusk cutoff for demonstrations, but they still leave too much to administrative discretion and too little to students. The Code of Conduct still says students must "reserve" outdoor spaces, but there's no formal reservation system for outdoor assembly. UB still bans amplification equipment at protests, but has allowed various non-student speakers to parade around campus with loudspeakers. Chalk on sidewalks is prohibited. There's no commitment to institutional neutrality on political issues, meaning the University retains the authority to decide what speech represents the campus community. And there are no published standards for when UB can bring outside law enforcement onto campus to enforce its own policies. 

Organizations that track campus speech policies give UB a "Yellow Light" rating, meaning at least one policy is ambiguous enough to invite administrative overreach. That's not a rating a public research University should be comfortable with. While I maintain the opinion that UB's shortfalls in this sector do not stem from malice, the shortfalls still exist and may harm students. 

I've been working on this issue for over a year. Last fall, I authored a resolution on freedom of expression that passed the SUNY Student Assembly with 84% support. It called on SUNY campuses to adopt policies rooted in the Chicago Principles — the University of Chicago's 2015 framework that various free speech organizations consider the gold standard — and to strengthen protections for peaceful assembly across the system. Part of the cited works for that resolution was UB's Faculty Senate resolution, which echoes many of the core tenets of the Chicago Principles. With that in mind, we certainly have friends in the F.S. on the issues of academic freedom, free speech, and freedom of demonstration. I've also had conversations with UB's administration regarding the issue, and my perspective is that there is an earnest want for improvements that students need. 

But what I've learned from that experience is that if students ask for stronger policies (and from my experience as a candidate, they do), we're likely to be told that UB needs to wait on SUNY, or the faculty need to wait on the administration, or some other version of the mind-numbing

can-kicking game. UB can strengthen its own policies without waiting for Albany. UB is R1 for research, D1 for sports, and it should be E1 for expression; a leader in that field. 

That's part of why I'm running for SA President with UB Forward: alongside Josh Brodsky for VP of Advocacy, Kaly Lin for Treasurer, Joe Laurita for VP of Events, and Roja Khanam for VP of Club Services. Our fourteen-point platform includes specific proposals on this issue, not just a line about "supporting free speech." 

Here's what we're pushing for. First, update UB's Freedom of Expression Policy to include a commitment to institutional neutrality and explicit recognition of students' right to physically assemble on campus. The Faculty Senate adopted a version of this in 2017 based on the Chicago Principles. It needs teeth and clarity. Second, establish a clearly indicated neutral protest liaison; someone who can provide real-time guidance to demonstrators about what's allowed without serving as an enforcement mechanism or any sort of coercive force. This is how you prevent misunderstandings from becoming arrests. Third, require de-escalation and anti-discrimination training for campus and public safety officers that covers First Amendment protections and conflict resolution. Fourth, publish transparent enforcement reports so students know how policies are being applied and whether they're being applied consistently. Fifth, clarify that spontaneous, non-disruptive assembly does not constitute a Code of Conduct violation. Because right now, the Code technically says otherwise. 

These are policies that exist at peer institutions across the country and have been cited as boons to student life. What's been missing at UB is follow-through. Follow-through is what UB Forward is built around. 

The people who run Student Life are not the enemy here. My experience with UB's administration has been mostly positive, and I've found them to be good people working under artificial constraints. The focus is on the policies that need improvement and on students' right to be involved in shaping them. That's our goal. 

If you care about this issue, vote for UB Forward. And if you disagree with us on student expression, let us know during the candidate forums/debates. 

Grant Peterson is a UB SA Senator and SUNY Student Assembly Delegate. He is a candidate for SA President with UB Forward. The views expressed are his own.