When a student government committee at UC Irvine
voted in March to ban flags of all nationalities — including the United
States — from a common area on campus, the news quickly went viral and
condemnation in the court of public opinion was swift. Mostly
outrage descended from citizen groups and political pundits from across
the country, making UCI a focal point of debate on patriotism and free
speech. The action voted on by a subcommittee of six student government
leaders was not unanimous and was quickly vetoed by the student
government executive council. Nearly three months later,
the issue is still echoing throughout the state and local governments
with a proposed California constitutional amendment to prohibit banning
the American flag on state-funded college campuses. Irvine City Council
members voted Tuesday to support the effort being considered by
legislators... Debate during the meeting centered on the 1st Amendment rights. One
public speaker, who identified himself as a proud UCI student, stated
that while he did not agree with the original decision of the student
leaders "the moment we censure somebody's speech, the moment we say
someone can't say something we disagree with, it's Big Brother."... Support for the amendment passed by a 4-1 margin... Before reaching a vote in the state legislature, the
amendment would first have to pass approval by the Senate Committee on
Elections and Constitutional Amendments.
Full story at http://www.dailypilot.com/news/tn-dpt-me-0531-uci-flag-20150530,0,4610358.story
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