Sydney Martinez, Campus Carrier opinions editor

The right to protest and assemble is protected under the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. Student protesting on campus fosters leadership, advocacy, and the development of critical skills essential for real-world success. Yet people continue to debate whether students should have the right to protest on campus.

Students should be able to protest freely on campus without restrictions. Not only do they raise awareness for problems they deem are overlooked by people of higher power, but they also develop skills that are applicable in the real world as they shape into leaders. As stated in the Metropolitan State University of Denver Research Guide, “It is through advocacy and activism that students develop communication, relationship building, connections, and critical thinking skills.” Colleges are meant to challenge students intellectually and socially, and protest provides a platform where students can put their learning into practice by advocating for change and testing their beliefs in real world contexts. These experiences equip students to advocate for social justice, negotiate with authority figures and make an impact in their communities.

This past spring semester, students from various universities and colleges held encampments to raise awareness of the war in Gaza and the increasing death toll. UGA and Columbia University are examples of schools that have recently implemented stricter protest rules to prevent students from disrupting the campus environment. UGA honors students’ First Amendment rights, but the university takes issue when protests block building entrances, sidewalks or involve the use of loud megaphones, which all disrupt the campus environment.

From the university’s perspective, these disruptions interfere with the day to day operations of the school, which impede students’ access to classes and creates safety concerns. However, activists argue that disruption is often necessary to effect change and draw attention to a cause. While universities have legitimate concerns about disruption, these short-term inconveniences are often necessary for longterm social progress. After all, non-disruptive protests can go unnoticed, and causing some level of inconvenience is sometimes essential to making a statement that resonates with the public.

Similarly, Columbia University allows protests only in designated spaces and restricts campus access to those with university identification, aiming to balance students’ rights to protest with the institution’s responsibility to maintain order. Critics of these policies argue that limiting protests to designated zones dilutes their impact, turning activism into a controlled performance rather than a genuine expression of discontent. Real change requires challenging existing structures, not conforming to them.

To apply this to a closer context, Berry College has its own protest policies. Berry refers to protesting as “soliciting” in the Viking Code Student Handbook. Students can solicit for humanitarian causes, but the solicitation must be approved by the dean of students before the event takes place. Additionally, flyers to be posted across campus require approval from the director of student activities and the dean of students. This isn’t as limiting as some other schools, but our freedom to protest is being constrained to limit what we say. Rather than imposing restrictive policies that limit students’ ability to protest, universities and colleges alike should focus on fostering a safe but open environment where peaceful — even if disruptive — protests are permitted as long as they do not infringe on others’ rights to safety and education.

The schools’ perspective are understandable. Students pay for their classes, and if they cannot get to class without being interrupted by a loud megaphone, it becomes problematic not only for the students, but the school’s reputation as well. If their environments begin to turn into chaos with the number of unrestricted protests on campus, then less students will want to apply to a school that is becoming “unsafe.”

As for the case of UGA and Colombia University, the students’ intent was for their schools to cut ties and all business with Israel. Although not all protests yield the exact results students aim for, their unrestricted actions often spark important discussions that can influence policy changes and broader societal outcomes. The demonstrating of power from student activism in a democratic society can be all the necessary for attention to be caught by elected officials and candidates for change to be on ballots.