College students at the University of Minnesota are faced daily with progressive gender policies that force behavior in conflict with personal conviction. These unconstitutional policies are not only a violation of free speech, but also come with the threat of university-imposed consequences if violated. But students of principle still remain and are pushing back against these insane campus rules.
One such policy is called the "Pronoun Policy." It states, “University members and units are expected to use the names, gender identities, and pronouns specified to them by other University members” and “University members and units are also expected to use other gendered personal references, if any, that are consistent with the gender identities and pronouns specified by University members.”
This policy directly requires students and faculty members to refer to others in an ideologically loaded manner, even if it is against their personal convictions on sexuality. In contradiction with biological reality, the policy asks the students to adopt a certain set of values in practice, even if it is misaligned with not only their beliefs, but the factual truth. If they don’t adhere to the rules, students can be charged with violating the Board of Regents Policy: Student Conduct Code and/or the Administrative Policy: Discrimination, which could result in unspecified discipline. This information is found on the University of Minnesota’s website "Policy Library." Various student testimonies from around the nation have also demonstrated harassment or disdain from professors and peers often accompanying their refusal to adhere to things like pronoun policies.
Unfortunately, this is not the only instance of publicly-funded universities forcing students and faculty to bow to progressive gender ideology. In 2023, student Daria Danley sued Montana State University (MSU), which charged her with “hate speech” and “discrimination.” It also gave her a “no-contact order” toward her sorority and recommended that it evict her from her sorority house. This was after she questioned Alpha Gamma Delta’s “insistence” that members identify themselves with preferred pronouns. A settlement was eventually reached in which MSU dropped the “no-contact order,” and Danley dropped the case. Fortunately, the national Alpha Gamma Delta reinstated her membership. The whole incident was, however, a gross violation of Danley’s First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
In 2018, philosophy professor Dr. Nicholas Meriwether filed a lawsuit against Shawnee State University Trustees. He had been accused of violating the university’s nondiscrimination policy and of creating a “hostile environment” by refusing to call a student by their preferred pronouns. However, he had offered to refer to the student by their last name. The university informed him that further refusal to use preferred pronouns could result in corrective actions, including suspension or termination. A federal judge initially dismissed the case, but it was eventually ruled in Meriwether’s favor by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit. The university settled for $400,000 in damages and legal fees and guaranteed that Meriwether would be safe in the future from using any student’s preferred pronouns. Yet, the university publicly stated that they “adamantly deny that anyone at Shawnee State deprived Dr. Meriwether of his free speech rights or his rights to freely exercise his religion” (Shawnee State University).
Yet another example is theater professor Richard Bugg at Southern Utah University (SUU). In 2022, he filed a lawsuit against SUU because he was charged with violating university policy for not using gender-neutral pronouns for one of his students. Bugg was accused of discrimination and harassment based on gender identity. SUU’s punishment required Bugg to take a class about gender-neutral pronouns, forcing him to use students’ preferred pronouns, and the looming threat of possible termination. In the end, the case was dismissed, but he continued in his position at SUU.
I grew up in the Minnesota public school system until the 10th grade. My parents decided to pull me out because of the woke ideology being taught at school. I am so grateful for this decision. I distinctly remember one moment when I realized progressive ideology was taking over. I was given a vocabulary test in my 9th-grade English class. Most of the test seemed normal, until I got to a question that asked me something along the lines of “President Trump makes women feel ____ when he looks ______ at them.” I was shocked, stunned, and unsure of how to answer. This was a turning point for me and should sound the alarm to all parents who want to protect their children!
The University of Minnesota is a government-sponsored institution, and its "Pronoun Policy” is in direct violation of the First Amendment. One current student said she “believe[s] freedom of speech is essential, but it can sometimes be manipulated to portray conservative viewpoints as inferior, particularly on college campuses.” Another student said that, “[a]s someone who has lived in the South my entire life, coming to freshman orientation and being told I had to introduce myself using pronouns was definitely a shock. And after reading the University of Minnesota’s pronoun policies, as a student, that is definitely not something I am proud to represent. Because of freedom of speech from the First Amendment, I have the right to call my peers by the gender pronouns that God created them to be, as well as remain silent when asked about my own pronouns.”
American universities have long been known to be indoctrination factories for young adults. This pattern of various University administrations imposing progressive rhetoric and labels on students and faculty is not only unconstitutional but also utterly disturbing. Upon celebrating the 250th birthday of our great nation, we must fight to preserve moral clarity and common sense not only in our educational institutions, but in the very fabric of our society. The next generation needs to be equipped and prepared to preserve truth and order so America can continue to flourish, not be destroyed by progressive ideologies claiming freedom. If our freedom of speech is taken away, as shown at the University of Minnesota, many other rights are sure to follow.
Dalaney Book is a Young Women for America (YWA) leader from Minnesota. YWA, a project of Concerned Women for America, trains and mobilizes emerging young Christian female leaders to protect and promote Biblical values and Constitutional principles through prayer, education, and advocacy in their high schools, colleges, and local communities.