By Elena Chin Coppola
“Without Freedom of Thought, there can be no such thing as Wisdom; and no such thing as public Liberty, without Freedom of Speech.” – Benjamin Franklin
On December 15, I had the honor of attending a White House event commemorating the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791. With America nearing its 250th birthday, it was a powerful reminder of the liberties that make our unique experiment in self-government possible. Today, more than ever, those liberties are being put to the test and must be defended, especially in our schools and on our college campuses, where viewpoint diversity is too often punished rather than debated. Students are learning that certain perspectives are protected while others are policed; that conformity is rewarded and dissent is prohibited.
Students with dissenting thought fear speaking out because they’ve learned speaking out can cost them grades, opportunities, and social standing. This kind of forced self-censorship wears them down mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, leaving them feeling anxious and isolated. The problem that has been building for decades, is spreading beyond college campuses and into K–12 schools. Nearly twenty years ago, the late author and activist David Horowitz, along with others, challenged the campus culture of intimidation by championing a bill known as the “Academic Bill of Rights” (ABOR), designed to protect students from viewpoint discrimination and ensure academic evaluation is based on merit, not ideological conformity. In New York, while ten legislators supported the bill, SUNY and CUNY unions mobilized against it, denied a problem existed, and reframed the debate to protect the “academic freedom” and discretion of the professors rather than students’ rights. The State Education Department made no effort to remedy the problem, and it remained a legislative battle. After a few years of stalling, the bill died in committee and students continued to report mounting pressure to conform, along with fear of retaliation for questioning college orthodoxy. When professors use grades to police student beliefs, it is not education, it is bullying and intimidation, which contradicts the State Education Department’s policy to “create a safe and supportive environment free from discrimination and intimidation.”
New Yorkers are now feeling the consequences of decades of ignored viewpoint discrimination and censorship. What began on college campuses spread far beyond higher education and has reached the highest levels of state government. Attorney General Letitia James, Education Secretary Betty Rosa, and the New York State Board of Regents are currently being sued in federal court by the Southeastern Legal Foundation (SLF) on behalf of Massapequa Union Free School District Board President Kerry Wachter; Rotterdam-Mohonasen Central School District Board Member Danielle Ciampino (Schenectady County); and Rockville Centre parents Sarah Rouse and Isaac Kuo.
The lawsuit was filed in response to a memo issued by Attorney General James and State Education Secretary Rosa in May 2025 threatening school board members with removal from office if they allow dissenting opinions that challenged policies related to transgender students or gender identity. As per the memo, “school boards should not entertain baseless allegations that transgender students’ identities and experiences are illegitimate, or that their mere presence in school spaces and participation in school activities is harmful to other students. Nor should boards allow individuals to intentionally misgender district students…” Such action on the part of the attorney general and other appointed bureaucrats is the predictable result of allowing viewpoint discrimination to go unchecked for decades. What began on college campuses has spread throughout every level of education and beyond.
The memo raises serious First Amendment concerns. The removal of elected school board members by unelected bureaucrats can be considered unconstitutional, especially if the removal is based on viewpoint disagreement rather than legal grounds and due process. Critics argue that the memo effectively permits speech in support of transgender policies, while pressuring those who disagree to self-censor. This is how freedom erodes and tyranny takes root.
In the insightful words of Frederick Douglass, “Liberty is meaningless where the right to utter one’s thoughts and opinions has ceased to exist. That, of all rights, is the dread of tyrants. It is the one right which they first of all strike down.” This is a defining moment, we must act to reverse this trend by defending and reintroducing the Academic Bill of Rights, to ensure enforceable protections for free speech and viewpoint diversity extend to every school in New York State. For more information about the bill and how to get involved email info@qvgop.org.
