Penn State Leadership Position Regarding Speakers

Controversial speakers are frequently guests of students and others at public universities, including at Penn State. These speakers often espouse controversial views and hateful rhetoric meant to denigrate or demean certain groups of people. Bound by its fundamental commitment to freedom of expression, university policy and the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Penn State, like other public institutions, must allow these speakers on our campuses to express themselves freely. Their presence at Penn State should in no way be construed as an endorsement of their views.

Many of these speakers and provocateurs are seeking to intentionally test the intersection of diversity and inclusion against free speech. Penn State is committed to both ideas. Penn State’s values call on the university community to “respect and honor the dignity of each person, embrace civil discourse, and foster a diverse and inclusive community.” The University is equally dedicated to upholding the right to free expression that is at the heart of higher education and knowledge discovery. Penn State condemns any rhetoric antithetical to these values, particularly that which denigrates individuals based on their race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, beliefs or disability.

Penn State also upholds the free expression rights of individuals who wish to peacefully protest speech with which they disagree. The university expects both those supporting an event and those opposing it to follow the law, university policies and the student code of conduct. University Police and Public Safety assess any event involving controversial speakers and work with external law enforcement partners to respond appropriately to keep events as safe as possible.

For members of the Penn State community who may be negatively impacted by any speech on campus, the university has a variety of resources available.

More information on freedom of speech is available in this primer on the First Amendment.