LETTER: Chants violated First Amendment right

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by Emily Nghiem

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In response to the letter from Bolie Williams IV ( Thresher , Sept. 1), if Rice University claims not to discriminate on the basis of religion, then students who believe in free speech should be accommodated equally as those, like Williams, who may not consider it an inalienable human right.

However, one might expect advocates of First Amendment rights and freedoms to show the same respect for "the right of the people peaceably to assemble" by refraining from speech or actions that would deliberately cause a breach of the peace and disrupt a public assembly.

The example quoted was "yelling fire in a crowded theater."

In this case, it could be argued that the chanting and other jacks during matriculation temporarily abridged other people's freedom of speech and right to assemble peaceably.

Unlike Williams, I believe that the First Amendment can be quite effective when interpreted in a way that checks itself, which I recommend here.

Emily Nghiem

Baker '88

This item appeared in the Opinion section of the September 8, 1995 issue.

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