A Christian student at Georgia Gwinnett College who says he’s being prevented from sharing his faith due to “speech restrictions” has filed a 76-page lawsuit against GGC’s president and 10 other college officials. “The First Amendment guarantees every student’s freedom of speech and religion. Every public school …has the duty to protect and promote those freedoms,” said Alliance for Defending Freedom legal counsel Travis Barham. The ADF is representing student Chike Uzuegbunam.
Uzuegbunam’s lawyer complains that GGC just confines the free speech of students “to two small speech zones” and then “censors the speech that occurs in those areas.” Last summer the student first violated GGC’s policy when handing out literature and talking with willing listeners about his faith on the plaza in front of the campus library.
The ADF says that he was stopped by college officials who said the student required a permit. He needed the permit, he was told, to approach anyone to privately share his faith.
Barham notes the college’s only exceptions are two restricted “free speech” zones, comprising just .0015 percent of the 260-acre campus. Even in those zones, however, students must submit materials they wish to display or hand out three days in advance and are restricted to use of the zones only once every 30 days.
The lawsuit says Uzuegbunam complied with the rules, seeking and receiving permission in August to share his faith in one of the restricted zones. However, 20 minutes later, a campus police officer ordered him stop because he had received complaints. “People are calling us because their peace and tranquility is being disturbed and we’ve asked you to stop,” a second officer on scene informed Uzuegbunam.
InsiderAdvantage has learned that other speakers have been permitted by GGC to use amplified sound, both inside and outside the restricted zones – some using vulgar language – without interference, Uzuegbunam’s lawyer, however, says his client was threatened with a charge of “disorderly conduct” and forced to leave.
GGC says it does not comment on pending litigation.
