A one person protest for free speech March 15, 1985

 

 

Dear friend:

In the last few weeks startling things have happened on campus regarding freedom of speech.

Henry Morris, the SGA advisor and director of student activities has moved to establish a governing board over all student publications: The Beacon, Essence, Asylum, the yearbook, Artery, even the radio station, WPSC.

This would place under the SGA appointment of editors, who would be then responsible for reporting the names of the writers and others, and oversee the publication or broadcasts, requiring each to live up their constitutions – which in turn must be approved by the SGA.

Editors would be required to submit their work for pre-publication censorship, conforming to standards of taste, content and form. Punitive action will be within the SGA’s power including fire of editors or even suspension of the publication.

In light of this, I’ll be making an appearance at the SGA office on their opening on Monday, March 25 with the intention of conducting a sit-in.

This is not a rash move since my own publication is intricately entwined with William Paterson College and could suffer a similar fate if the SGA should decide we are unacceptable.

I am asking you as a citizen of the Free Press society to support my action. Since my action is clearly illegal, it is likely that I will wind up in jail. But I am doing this of my own free will and do not expect you to do anything illegal on my behalf. I ask that you write the SGA or perform some act that will highlight the outrageousness of the SGA’s actions or possibly raise bail for me (since this comes at a time when my own finances are not likely to cover it.)

If you are so inclined, you are welcome to join me. The more people, the more effective the protest. But I am not asking to violate the law.

I am doing this because it makes me angry when I see censorship imposed – or forcing people to self-censor.

This is nothing but a play for power by the SGA. This is not an advertisement. I am asking for no pre-event publicity which might cause the SGA to perform a preventive strike. It is simply time to take a stand or as Mario Savio once put it, “to put our bodies on the gears and make the machine stop!”

 

 

Sincerely yours,

Al

 

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