(Molly Bruns, Headline USA) As George Soros-backed left-wing rioters terrorize college campuses across the country with impunity, conservative student groups continue to face unconstitutional obstacles at every turn.
One such battle, between the student government for the University of Buffalo and the school’s chapter of Young Americans for Freedom, went to federal court on Friday after the school sought to cut the group’s funding and ban it from hosting on-campus events, according to the College Fix.
UB’s Student Association froze $6,000 in YAF funding after the group refused to cut ties with YAF’s national organization.
A month later, the Student Association agreed to re-recognize YAF, but it continued to demand that the local chapter to forfeit its right to sue, turn over its funding and limit its coordination with “other individuals or organizations.”
The YAF group declined to make the requested changes, leading to Friday’s hearing at the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York.
The conservative, pro-Christian Alliance Defending Freedom represented the group in the case.
“It’s unfortunate that University at Buffalo is penalizing Young Americans for Freedom from pursuing their group’s mission,” ADF attorney Logan Spena said.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to argue before the court to affirm that universities can’t force student groups like YAF to give up their constitutional freedom to receive official recognition and the benefits that flow from it,” Spena added.
The Student Association altered its policies after the YAF chapter invited conservative commentator and Daily Wire host Michael Knowles to campus to speak about transgenderism, eliciting an uproar among leftist groups who sought to disrupt the event and force its cancellation.
The school administration released an official statement titled “Standing With Our Transgender Community,” and a student protest took place outside of the building where Knowles spoke.
According to the ADF, student governments often overstep their bounds.
“Unfortunately, it is all too common for student governments to abuse their authority by adopting policies that violate students’ liberties,” ADF attorney Travis Barham explained. “But rarely have we seen a student government that treats student groups as its wholly owned subsidiaries that it can micromanage, and rarely have we seen a university that would permit this level of mistreatment.”
