EDUCATION/GOP: “A federal judge on Friday [2-9-18] blocked the University of Washington from charging a college Republican group $17,000 in security fees for hosting a controversial speaker on campus.
The student group invited Joey Gibson, head of Patriot Prayer, a conservative group known for rallies in support of President Donald Trump in liberal enclaves, to speak at a campus rally on Saturday. The event is expected to draw large protests, including from the far-left antifa movement, prompting the university to anticipate high security costs… In an order Friday, Judge Marsha Pechman forbade the university from imposing the security costs on the students, saying such a move would have the effect of ‘chilling speech.’
The judge’s decision is ‘an acknowledgment…that there is a problem on college campuses, where conservative groups are treated differently from other groups,’ said Bill Becker, president of Freedom X, a nonprofit legal group that defends free expression of conservative and religious groups. The firm is representing the University of Washington College Republicans pro bono in their case against the school.
University officials reject the notion that they are discriminating against conservative groups. Friday’s order was a temporary restraining order, the parties are expected back in court in a few weeks to debate the underlying legality of attaching high fees to students’ attempts to host events.”
–Michelle Hackman, “Judge Blocks School From Charging GOP Group for Security Costs,” The Wall Street Journal online, Feb. 10, 2018 10:08pm