THURSDAY FEBRUARY 19, 2015 VOLUME 104 ISSUE 59 www.UniversityStar.com
Defending the First Amendment since 1911
UNIVERSITY
1969
2015
—PHOTO COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES
Regulations of free speech at the Stallions were not as lenient during the Vietnam War as they are today.
PRESLIE COX STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Students gather at the free speech zone Feb. 12 on campus.
THROUGH THE YEARS
University protection of free speech expands over the decades By Anna Herod SENIOR NEWS REPORTER @annaleemurphy
T
he protest was silent, but the message was loud and clear—the war in Vietnam needed to end. In the midst of the Vietnam War, a series of anti-war protests surged through university campuses across the nation. Southwest Texas State University was no exception. About 100 students rallied around the Fighting Stallions in November 1969 in a silent and nonviolent antiwar protest despite warnings from university officials to not participate in such events. Their constitutional right to freedom of speech proved to
come at a cost. At the time, the University Policy and Procedures Statement on free speech, UPPS No. 07.04.05, only permitted campus expression in an area on the edge of campus on Fridays after 4 p.m. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) was contacted by the students prior to the demonstration and advised them to remain silent and not block any sidewalks during the event, said Al Hinson, one of the protestors who was in his second semester at the university in 1969. Floyd Martine, then the dean of students, arrived within minutes of the demonstration in an effort to put an end to the activity, Hinson said.
“He gave us the ultimatum to depart from the area or suffer the consequences,” Hinson said. “I just felt like I was fully within my rights to sit there.” Ten students continued to protest after Martine’s announcement. Those students came to be known as the “San Marcos 10.” The dean decided the 10 students would be expelled and all course credit earned at the university would be erased. Hinson said he avoided his parents for several days after the incident for fear of what his father, a decorated World War II veteran, would say. “He said, ‘Look son, I don’t necessarily agree with you on all this war stuff,’ but he said, ‘I’m so proud of
you that you stood up for something that you truly believed in,’” Hinson said. “I was blown away, and he became my hero all over again.” ACLU representatives observed the event. Officials immediately filed a lawsuit on the students’ behalf, Hinson said. After a long legal battle, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals ultimately upheld the decision of the school in Bayless v. Martine. Hinson’s expulsion marked the end of his college career, but he harbors no hard feelings against the university. “Freedom of speech is a freedom,
but it doesn’t mean it’s free,” Hinson said. “You pay the cost every once in a while.” The targets for consequences extended beyond the San Marcos 10. Bill Cunningham, who was a sophomore in 1969, was managing editor of The University Star at the time. He was fired from the publication for writing an editorial condemning the actions of the university toward the students. “It was actually a pretty well-written editorial, I thought,” Cunningham said. The students were denied their
See FREE SPEECH, Page 2
UNIVERSITY NEWS BRIEF
Faculty Senate opposes statewide campus carry By Bleah B. Patterson NEWS REPORTER @missbleahp Faculty Senate and liaisons approved a “proclamation in opposition” of a campus-carry bill proposed at the ongoing 84th Texas Legislative Session. Faculty Senators held a joint meeting with liaisons Feb. 18. Liaisons are faculty members elected by their departments to represent interests to the senate. “I believe there is enough support to begin drafting a statement by the senate and show the president and the provost next week,” said Michel Conroy, faculty senate chair. Each liaison stood and expressed specific opposition to the bill. Some suggested canvasing the faculty, but the liaisons ultimately chose to leave the senate to write the proclamation as soon as possible. Conroy said officials from the University of Texas and Texas A&M University have already sent proclamations to the legislature, creating a push to expedite the process. UT opposed the campus-carry bill, and A&M approved of it, Conroy said. Conroy said Provost Eugene Bourgeois and President Denise Trauth have requested the legislation allow individual regions and university systems to decide on the issue rather than pass a statewide law. The Round Rock campus will be represented in the proclamation as an opposed party, said Barbara Covington, nursing senator. “I work at Round Rock, so I represent them here when I say we are in strong opposition (of) the bill—no question,” Covington said. Covington said she considers the Round Rock Campus high-risk because it serves “many mentally ill students,” and provide cares for kindergarten-age children. The Faculty Senate will write the opposition proclamation next week.
Protesters, activists take to the Quad By Bleah B. Patterson NEWS REPORTER @missbleahp Protests and rallies are not uncommon in the Texas State Quad and can create change using different techniques. Texas State has a designated free speech zone in the Quad where students often protest and rally to create awareness of different issues. Students have witnessed a range of activism this semester, from silent protests to speeches, at the Fighting Stallions. Rallies and protests are not a fad, and activism has driven historic change for decades, said T. Jane Heffelfinger, history senior. Heffelfinger has protested regarding a variety of issues since she was in high school, including gay rights and police brutality. Lately she has decided to shave her head, hoping her appearance will initiate conversation about the inactivity of the government search for rapists in America. Heffelfinger said serial rapists are on the loose and efforts are not made to find them. “For me it’s because I looked around (and) realized we had a huge problem (with rape),” Heffelfinger said. “You’re always given these reasons like ‘boys will be boys,’ whatever, or ‘they didn’t mean it,’ or ‘only bad girls get raped, slutty girls,’ and I was tired of it.” She wants to stop that. “We’ve spent at least 20 years fighting a war on terror, but the terror is in our own backyard,” Heffelfinger said. “We have terrorists in our own neighborhood, and they’re terrorizing women.” Heffelfinger believes the goal of activism is not to change the minds of everyone on the street. The objective should be to identify those who share belief systems. “Numbers are really the most important thing because once you have numbers, lawmakers will listen,” she said. “And lawmakers are the people you need to listen. That’s how you spur on change.” Jessica O’Donnell, communication disorders sophomore and human committee director of H.E.A.T., said students want change when things don’t work. “We’re here to spread the
love,” she said, while standing in the quad Monday with a sign that read ‘Free Hugs!’ O’Donnell said her committee has been standing in the quad giving out encouragement, compli-
she was a student at the University of Florida and heard him preaching. “At the time it was just entertainment, but it got my attention, and I turned my life around,”
savior,” Jed said. “Making people angry has its effects, and it’s working.” Heffelfinger said activists have to take the advice of experienced advocates to be successful. Activ-
Numbers are really the most important thing because once you have numbers, lawmakers will listen. And lawmakers are the people you need to listen. That’s how you spur on change. —T. Jane Heffelfinger, history senior ments and hugs for more than a year. The committee hears testimonies of change in people’s lives. “People gravitate towards us because we don’t protest traditionally,” O’Donnell said. “We aren’t confrontational. Building relationships is a better form of activism.”
Cindy said. She said most people stop and watch protests for entertainment, but the Smocks use a different approach. “We believe it’s our place to guilt students into receiving salvation,” Cindy said. “People think we’re harsh, and people are dis-
ism is most effective when participants gather as a group and focus on politicians. Activism should be about uniting people, not isolating them. “To become an activist, you have to identify something that’s happening that’s a repeating problem,” Heffelfinger said.
DENISE CATHEY ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITOR
Sister Cindy and Brother Jed Smock protest Feb. 11 at the Stallions. Cindy Smock, also known as “Sister Cindy,” said she and her husband, “Brother” Jed Smock, have been “Confrontational Evangelists” together for 37 years. Jed has been a campus activist for 43 years. Cindy met him when
turbed, but it’s because we call them out on their sins.” Jed believes harsh activism is God’s way of calling into people’s lives. “You have to tell people they’re lost and dead before they seek a
She wishes young activists would cluster together and keep goals in mind. “This is the world they’re going to grow up in,” Heffelfinger said. “They need to make sure it’s the kind of world they want.”