Speech, Dissent, and Demonstration

All members of the Occidental College community have a responsibility to exemplify and support those freedoms in the interests of reasoned inquiry. The College’s particular commitments to academic freedom are set forth in the Faculty Handbook, Section I.

The rights of speech, demonstration, and dissent are essential to academic freedom and scholarly pursuits. Such expressive activities are welcome and permitted, consistent with the community expectations described herein. 

Freedoms and Responsibilities

Occidental College is an institution guided by a deep conviction of the worth and dignity of the advancement of knowledge. It affirms the values of free speech and peaceable assembly and supports their exercise as integral to academic freedom and scholarly pursuits. The College’s role is not to shield community members from unpleasant or offensive ideas, but to allow such ideas to be tested through discussion and debate. The College seeks to promote students’ civic engagement and personal development, in a setting where they may be guided by faculty and administrators and by the community’s values. The College also upholds students’ rights under California’s Leonard Law not to be disciplined for engaging in protected speech. 

These freedoms are not absolute, but exist in a balance of important rights and interests. The College has an interest in promoting the safety and rights of all community members and ensuring a genuinely free academic environment, unhampered by disruptive, coercive, or intimidating conduct. The College also expects students, faculty members, staff, administrators, and trustees to respect the dignity of others, to uphold the functioning and safety of shared campus spaces, to permit the expression of differing opinions, and to foster intellectual honesty, freedom of inquiry and instruction, and free expression both on and off campus. As described in the Faculty Handbook, faculty are particularly charged with respecting the free inquiry of their students and associates and creating an atmosphere conducive to learning. 

There are many forms of protected expression, and the College aims to provide numerous outlets for community members to express a variety of views. Examples of permissible forms of speech and expression include but are not limited to: 

• Publishing statements, letters, or resolutions on behalf of oneself or a group of individuals; 
• Holding a rally or demonstration and coordinating space reservations and other details with the College’s Campus Events Advisory Committee (CEAC); 
• Hosting events that highlight a particular interest or cause; 
• Stating one’s opinion during an event Q&A or discussion forum; 
• Hosting counter-events in a different space, or in a way that does not impede access to or interfere with the protested event; 
• Refusing to participate in an event or initiative; 
• Holding or displaying signs or posters, consistent with the College’s Posting & Publicity Policy and any disclosed conditions for a specific event.
• Coordinated clothing, symbolic gestures, tabling, and flyering (in line with College policies and guidelines) 
• Artistic or performance-based expressions

Unprotected Forms of Expression

This policy does not protect speech and expressive activities that constitute true threats, unlawful harassment, defamation, obscenity, incitement to imminent lawless action, or other types of legally unprotected expression. Nor does it protect protests and demonstrations that are non-peaceful, infringe on others’ rights, violate College policies or applicable laws, or substantially disrupt College programs or operations. For example:

1. Non-peaceful actions or demonstrations include those that physically endanger or injure, or threaten to physically endanger or injure, any person, or that damage or threaten to damage property.
2. Actions or demonstrations that invade the rights of others include those that create a hostile environment for another College community member(s); otherwise involve violation of the College’s Discrimination, Harassment & Retaliation Policy, Sexual & Interpersonal Misconduct Policy, or similar policies, laws, or regulations; or involve intimidating, doxxing, or harassing conduct.
3. Substantially disruptive actions or demonstrations include those that restrict others’ free movement, or substantially interfere with, or impede access to or from, regular activities or facilities of the College (such as classes, lectures, residential life, work, athletics, construction, ceremonies, and events). Although the level of disruption is dependent on all relevant circumstances, actions are more likely to become substantially disruptive when they continue for longer periods of time, impact a significant institutional function or event, or require excessive time or expense to address. 

Speakers on Campus 

Consistent with its educational mission, the College encourages campus groups to invite speakers with a wide range of perspectives. Speakers on campus must not only be protected from violence and harassment, but also be given an opportunity to be heard. Community members and visitors may not suppress others’ speech by obstructing, shouting down, or otherwise preventing them from being heard. Those who seek to call attention to grievances must not do so in ways that impede the educational or other activities of the institution.

The College’s Institutional Voice

The College preserves for the institution the right to speak or not on matters of public concern. Thus, when speaking or acting as private persons on such matters, members of the Occidental College community must avoid creating any impression that they speak or act for the College, or any of its departments or units. Nothing in this policy shall be taken to restrict academic discourse that is genuinely protected within the bounds of academic freedom and disciplines (see Faculty Handbook, Section 1). 

Time, Place, and Manner Restrictions

Consistent with Federal law, the College may place reasonable and content-neutral limitations on the time, place, and manner of any form of dissent and/or protest. These rules seek to balance individuals’ interests in free expression with the rights and freedoms of others—such as a student’s right to access their classes and other College activities, a professor’s ability to maintain pedagogical control within the classroom, and the College’s interest in hosting programs, classes, and events and maintaining a secure campus. Without limiting the general parameters described in this policy, the College sets forth the following specific rules for demonstrations and protests on campus or in any College activity or program:

• Students and other community members are required to abide by the College’s Posting & Publicity Policy, Event and Space Usage guidelines, and other College policies as may be in effect from time to time, including policies which set forth requirements for advance approval, registration, and management of campus events. Spontaneous expressive activities, as defined herein, are not subject to advance registration requirements.
• Demonstrations may not impede access to or effective functioning of any College building, program, or activity.
• Demonstrations and protests may not be held on campus between 12am - 6am or inside any campus building outside of that building’s regular business hours. (Business hours are 8am - 5pm unless otherwise indicated).
• Demonstrations may not involve the installation of permanent or semi-permanent structures, barriers, or other large items such as walls, barricades, booths, boards, building materials, planks, platforms, tents, fences, and furniture; nor may any items be used to cordon off an area of campus or prevent regular movement through it.
• Bullhorns, speakers, and other sound-magnification devices may not be used near classrooms, residence halls, or libraries, or in any manner that disrupts regular College programs or activities.
• Demonstrators must provide identification to Campus Safety officers and other College officials upon request. Such requests should only be made pursuant to this policy when there are reasonable grounds to believe that a person(s) has violated the policy.
• Demonstrators may not conceal their identities to evade accountability while violating any College policy or applicable law. Failure to provide identification and the concealment of identity, as just described, are each violations of this policy, and individuals may be charged with either or both offenses. 
  • This policy will not be used for any purpose connected with immigration status or enforcement. 
  • Nothing in this policy prohibits individuals from wearing masks or face coverings for health or religious reasons, while not engaged in violations of law or College policy. Individuals may be required to verify their identities (such as by providing identification and/or temporarily removing their face covering), if their identities are otherwise obscured for religious or medical reasons.
  • Individuals who conceal their identity to avoid identification while committing a public offense may also be responsible under California Penal Code Section 185.
• Demonstrators must disperse when instructed to do so by an authorized College official, including (without limitation) the President, Campus Safety officers, and the Dean of Students or designee.

Wherever possible, College officials will make best efforts to alert demonstrators to violations of College policies or laws, before issuing an order of dispersal or taking disciplinary actions, so that demonstrators may adjust their behavior and continue their expressive activities.

Planning for Demonstrations

Students are strongly encouraged to meet with a staff member in SLICE to plan for demonstrations, coordinate safety measures for both demonstrators and others, and ensure understanding of and adherence to this Speech, Dissent & Demonstration Policy. The College has also provided some general tips, tools, and resources for demonstration organizers in the College’s Leadership Library, including ways the College can support students in activism and leadership development.

Organized speeches, rallies, marches, and other planned events on Occidental’s campus must have a College-affiliated sponsor (an employee, student, or recognized club, department, or other unit who/that is responsible for organizing the event) and be conducted in a manner that is consistent with this policy and with the College’s requirements for events and space usage. For purposes of this policy and the Events and Space Usage policy(ies), an organized “event” is a planned, intentional gathering that occupies a shared space on campus and impacts others’ use of the same or surrounding spaces. 

Spontaneous expressive activity—meaning activity that was not planned well enough in advance to have gone through normal event-planning processes—is also expected and permitted. However, spontaneous activity remains subject to this and other applicable College policies. 

If community members (including students and employees) wish to plan a demonstration that would include any elements that are listed in the time, place, and manner restrictions above, they must engage in a collaborative planning process with College officials and receive advance authorization, to avoid disruption of regular College programs and activities.

Collaborative Resolution

The College has instituted procedures for presenting and peaceably resolving disagreements about policies. Officials at Occidental College are willing to examine, discuss, and explain institutional decisions and policies to any member of the College community. Students and employees who have concerns about the intent or impact of College Policies may also make requests and ask questions of the Occidental College Policy Committee. Through its Student Affairs and Dean’s Office staff, the College will conduct regular (at least annual) outreach to student and faculty groups to assess this policy’s impact and effectiveness.

Enforcement of Policy

This section provides details about the steps that may be taken to address apparent policy violations in the moment, as well as the regular processes that will be followed to determine accountability after the fact. When the President of the College or another College official informs an individual or group in a given area that their actions are found to be inconsistent with this policy and that they should disperse, anyone remaining may be charged with a violation of this policy. Orders to disperse should be based on clear evidence that one or more provisions of this policy has been violated.

Those acting in a manner that is inconsistent with this policy, whether they are acting individually or within a group, may be charged on the basis of the individual’s or group’s behavior with a violation of this policy.  Lack of intent or lack of awareness of the existence of College policy will not excuse violations.

The President of the College or their designee, is authorized to take actions against any student or other individual violating this policy. Actions may include arrest, notice of disciplinary charges, or other legal actions, and situations involving students or employees will be handled through the College’s disciplinary procedures. Any misconduct by students, staff, faculty, and visitors will normally be addressed by the Office of Student Conduct, Human Resources, the Dean’s Office, and Campus Safety, respectively. The President typically delegates their authority to manage conduct issues to these or other offices.

In the event of a non-peaceful or disruptive action on the property of Occidental College, the College will act according to the following procedures:

1. The President of the College, or their designee, may consider whether dialogue or some other form of non-disciplinary process can take place with those involved in the demonstration or disruption. Such processes may happen concurrently with an applicable disciplinary process. The President or their designee may place students on interim suspension for violating this policy, based on the criteria set forth in the applicable Code of Student Conduct.
2. Cases of disruption or non-peaceful action normally will be treated as a violation of the Code of Student Conduct, Employee and Faculty Handbooks, and/or any collective bargaining agreement, as applicable, and will be investigated and adjudicated by the normal conduct processes at the College.  
3. Individuals who are engaged in actions inconsistent with this policy will be notified that they are trespassing. Persons who continue to trespass after notification are subject to arrest (by a Peace Officer or by Private Person, per California Penal Code Section 834).
4. Occidental College may bill individuals or file civil suits to recover damages and costs.
5. While officials may take immediate steps to end non-peaceful or substantially disruptive protests, the College will adjudicate complaints and make final decisions about alleged violations of conduct through applicable College processes.

Dialogue and Restorative Practices

Along with the rights of speech, dissent, and demonstration come potential consequences to the cohesion of our campus community. Whether or not an expressive activity is within policy guidelines, the College recognizes that individual members of our community may experience certain expressions of speech negatively. Those engaged in the expressive activity may also experience others’ response and administrative processes negatively. 

When appropriate, the College will offer opportunities to engage in restorative practices surrounding protest activity or disciplinary proceedings that may result from a disruptive or non-peaceful protest. Other members of the campus community may also request or, with training, offer such opportunities. Engaging in restorative practices is voluntary and typically begins from a place of accountability. These restorative activities serve as an opportunity to deepen our shared understanding of one another’s experiences and points of view, and to begin the process of healing any harm that may have occurred. These restorative activities may run alongside a conduct process and are not meant to be a replacement for any College policies or procedures.