Re: “Students Stage Pro-Palestine Encampment on the Arts Quad”The right for all to speak freely is fundamental to the mission of a university. But the current encampment in the Arts Quad is a clear violation of University policies. It is an act of civil disobedience and, like all perpetrators of civil disobedience, the students occupying the encampment deserve to face the consequences of their actions in the University judicial system. The protesters demand for “amnesty” undercuts any claim of moral clarity — the key element of civil disobedience is the willingness to face the full consequences of one’s actions. So long as Cornell and law enforcement apply time, place and manner regulations in a content-neutral way, the encampments are not protected by free speech principles.
