csua.org/u/bhg -> www.alligator.org/pt2/050323freedom.php
JAMES VANLANDINGHAM Alligator Staff Writer TALLAHASSEE Republicans on the House Choice and Innovation Committee vote d along party lines Tuesday to pass a bill that aims to stamp out leftis t totalitarianism by dictator professors in the classrooms of Floridas u niversities. Dennis Baxley, R-O cala, passed 8-to-2 despite strenuous objections from the only two Democ rats on the committee. The bill has two more committees to pass before it can be considered by t he full House. While promoting the bill Tuesday, Baxley said a university education shou ld be more than one biased view by the professor, who as a dictator cont rols the classroom, as part of a misuse of their platform to indoctrinat e the next generation with their own views. The bill sets a statewide standard that students cannot be punished for p rofessing beliefs with which their professors disagree. Professors would also be advised to teach alternative serious academic theories that may disagree with their personal views. According to a legislative staff analysis of the bill, the law would give students who think their beliefs are not being respected legal standing to sue professors and universities. Students who believe their professor is singling them out for public ridi cule for instance, when professors use the Socratic method to force stud ents to explain their theories in class would also be given the right to sue. I dont want to hear about Intel ligent Design (a creationist theory), and if you dont like it, theres th e door, Baxley said, citing one example when he thought a student should sue. Dan Gelber, D-Miami Beach, warned of lawsuits from students enrolled in Holocaust history courses who believe the Holocaust never happened. Similar suits could be filed by students who dont believe astronauts land ed on the moon, who believe teaching birth control is a sin or even by S hands medical students who refuse to perform blood transfusions and beli eve prayer is the only way to heal the body, Gelber added. Universities will have to hire lawyers so our curricula can be decided by judges in courtrooms. Professors migh t have to pay court costs even if they win from their own pockets. The staff analysis also warned the bill may shift responsibility for dete rmining whether a students freedom has been infringed from the faculty t o the courts. Freedom is a dangerous thing, an d you might be exposed to things you dont want to hear, he said. Being a businessman, I found out you can be sued for anything. Besides, if stud ents are being persecuted and ridiculed for their beliefs, I think they should be given standing to sue. During the committee hearing, Baxley cast opposition to his bill as lefti sts struggling against mainstream society. The critics ridicule me for daring to stand up for students and faculty, he said, adding that he was called a McCarthyist. Baxley later said he had a list of students who were discriminated agains t by professors, but refused to reveal names because he felt they would be persecuted. Eleanor Sobel, D-Hollywood, argued universities and the state Board of Governors already have policies in place to protect academic freedom. Moreover, a state law outlining how professors are supposed to teach wo uld encroach on the boards authority to manage state schools. The big hand of state government is going into the universities telling t hem how to teach, she said. But Baxley compared the states universities to children, saying the legis lature should not give them money without providing guidance to their be havior. Professors are accountable for what they say or do, he said. Theyre accou ntable to the rest of us in society All of a sudden the faculty think th ey can do what they want and shut us out. Why is it so unheard of to say the professor shouldnt be a dictator and control that room as their tot alitarian niche? In an interview before the meeting, Baxley said arrogant, elitist academi cs are swarming to oppose the bill, and media reports misrepresented his intentions.
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