Column: Southwestern silenced... almost

First Amendment no longer includes freedom of the press at Southwestern College

Emily Kelley / Roundup

“Generation Why?” is a column that will focus on social and political issues that affect students. From budget cuts to mental health, it will always question why?

In this country, we are taught about freedom. We’ve learned about it in school. We’ve heard the word used a million times on TV. We’ve fought and died for it. It’s always the same: freedom of religion, freedom to assemble, freedom to petition the government and freedom of speech.

But being a student on a college newspaper doesn’t always afford you the same freedoms as everyone else. This will not be tolerated.

Recently, student journalists on the Southwestern Sun at Southwestern College (SWC) in Chula Vista, Calif. saw this first hand. Their first issue was to profile the continuing problems with Vice President of Business and Financial Affairs Nicholas Alioto, as well as the controversial governing board election.

On the eve of the first issue being published, their administration filed a cease-anddesist order to keep the issue from being printed, citing a policy that had not been enforced for almost 20 years. The policy not only bars the paper from printing without the board’s approval, but allows the board to oversee content and control the firing of an Editor in Chief.

And this was not the only incident according to the Sun. Campus police stopped members of the Sun’s staff while trying to take equipment off campus, even though using computers and cameras off campus has been a common practice, according to senior staff writer Lyndsay Winkley.

The Sun’s reported that their advisor, Max Branscomb, has been forced to teach more classes for the same pay, and he could face termination or suspension if the paper went to print on board funds.

Three other professors were already suspended after participating in a peaceful protest regarding class cuts. The three professors were hand delivered their suspensions by the Director of Human Resources, along with an armed police officer. This event helped to land Southwestern’s administration on the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression worst offenders list.

It is obvious that the administration at Southwestern has a general disregard for the first amendment, and not just with the newspaper. This is a problem.

First Amendment freedoms are different for college and high school newspapers, but we still have the same basic rights. We learn in journalism, that just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should do something. Perhaps SWC’s administration should learn this. Just because they could censor, oversee or stop the printing of the newspaper, doesn’t mean that they should. And even if they do, they best believe it will not go unnoticed.

It is only after extensive media coverage that the administration met with Branscomb to try and come to an agreement regarding their outdated and ill-advised policy. Even so, the Sun has decided that until the policy is abolished, they will print without district funds.

I attend a school nearly 3 hours away from SWC, but I am still a student journalist, the same as the members of the Sun. And what’s bad for one college is bad for all colleges, since policy and procedure can catch like wild fire.

Yes, we are students. Yes, we are beginners. But, for the most part, we are closest to the issues, because they affect us the most directly. If college administrations or governing boards are doing something wrong, it is our job to make sure the faculty and staff and, most importantly, the students know about them.

And while I retain my First Amendment rights, I will fight until my last printed word to make sure that I, the Sun, and every student newspaper has the right to do so.

So SWC administration: We are watching and we will not be silenced.