Colorado College, a well-ranked liberal arts school in Colorado Springs, suspended a student for six months over a single anonymous comment he made on Yik Yak. Thaddeus Pryor, a junior at the college, was removed from campus on Nov. 20 because a remark he made on Yik Yak violated the college’s policies against “Abusive Behavior” ;and “Disruption of College Activities.” ;His offense, which he admitted to, was replying to a post tagged “#blackwomenmatter” with, “They matter, they’re just not hot.” Initially, Pryor was booted off campus for 21 months, but the suspension ;was reduced on appeal ;this month, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. ; “The six word comment I admitted to …
Colorado College, a well-ranked liberal arts school in Colorado Springs, suspended a student for six months over a single anonymous comment he made on Yik Yak.
Thaddeus Pryor, a junior at the college, was removed from campus on Nov. 20 because a remark he made on Yik Yak violated the college’s policies against “Abusive Behavior” ;and “Disruption of College Activities.” ;His offense, which he admitted to, was replying to a post tagged “#blackwomenmatter” with, “They matter, they’re just not hot.”
Initially, Pryor was booted off campus for 21 months, but the suspension ;was reduced on appeal ;this month, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette. ;
“The six word comment I admitted to writing then deleting shortly after was mean, hurtful, and neither reflective of my character, nor my actual beliefs,” Pryor wrote in his appeal. “That being said, I still made the comment, and am deeply sorry for it.”
The reduced sanction only came after the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, a civil liberties nonprofit, got involved by writing to the college on Nov. 25. FIRE has subsequently posted some of the documents from Pryor’s case online, and accused the college of disregarding its student guide’s statement that “all members of the college community have such basic rights as freedom of speech.”
Because Colorado College is a private institution, it generally does not have to grant the same First Amendment free speech rights that a public school would. ;However, FIRE insists the school’s statement about free speech in its college guide creates a “contractual obligation.” ;
What remains unclear is how the college determined Pryor was behind the posts. FIRE confirmed to The Huffington Post that it is not aware of how the school concluded it was Pryor. In his appeal letter, Pryor said one dean told him “they had no evidence other than a rumor ‘through the grapevine,'” and noted the college also accused him of posting a Yak that said white people were a superior race. He denies making any offensive post besides the one in response to “#blackwomenmatter.” ;
Yik Yak is an anonymous social media application on smartphones that restricts posts to those within a geolocated boundary, like a college campus. While students have frequently protested in recent years over racist and offensive posts on the app, colleges have no way to identify who says anything on Yik Yak. The company has told HuffPost it does not reveal user identities unless there is a legitimate request from law enforcement regarding a potential threat. ;
The college did not respond to request for comment. ;
_____
Tyler Kingkade covers higher education and is based in New York. You can contact him at tyler.kingkade@huffingtonpost.com, or on Twitter: @tylerkingkade.
;
Related Coverage:
- Hate Yik Yak And Anonymous Gossip Sites All You Want, But They Won’t Go Away
- Complaint Claims University Where Student Was Killed Failed To Act On Relentless Yik Yak Threats
- Your College Dean Might Be Looking At Your Yik Yak Posts
- Pressure Increases On Yik Yak To Do More About Harassment On The Anonymous App
;
— This feed and its contents are the property of The Huffington Post, and use is subject to our terms. It may be used for personal consumption, but may not be distributed on a website.
Source:
Colorado College Suspends Student For 6 Months Over Yik Yak Post
