Student Stripped of First Amendment Rights in Wake of Virginia Tech Massacre

In the days following the massacre at Virginia Tech, where a student killed 31 students and faculty members before turning the gun on himself, most people were on edge about the possibility of a similar event occurring to them. College students were among the most affected by the shootings, since they believed their colleges and universities to be a place where people can learn freely, without the problems of bullying and class distinctions that typically plague high school students. Apparently, this is not the case, since one of the reasons that the Virginia Tech gunman cited for his bloodshed was that he was sick and disgusted with all of the rich students on the Virginia Tech campus.

Everyone was talking about this incident because it seemed so unexpected. A junior at the University of Colorado, Max Carson, found that talking about his opinion of the events was not as welcome as everyone else’s. Karson was arrested by Boulder County police officers after making statements during a class discussion where he “made comments about understanding how someone could kill 32 people,” said police Cmdr. Brad Wiesley. According to witnesses, Karson made statements expressing how the florescent light bulbs and unpainted walls made him angry enough to kill people, and that many students were afraid to return to class with this individual.

Following this class, police arrested Karson on suspicion of interfering with staff, faculty, or students of an education institution.

Max’s father believes that this is a clear violation of his son’s First Amendment rights, which allows him the right to free speech, and I agree. I believe that Max was merely expressing the opinions that many of us feel, but do not express because of how they will sound to other people. Were his comments a bit inappropriate and untactful? Yes. Should he be put in jail for them? NO. Is this an instance of censorship that resulted in the revoking of his First Amendment rights? YES.

There is no caveat on the First Amendment that states that all people have to agree with the consensus when a tragedy occurs. There is no evidence that Karson really supported the shooter and that he felt no remorse for the murders of over 30 innocent people. We are looking at one comment in a conversation, which was most likely, a hyperbole of what he actually believes. We cannot look down on this young man for stating his opinion just because it is controversial. The First Amendment is there to protect the speech you don’t agree with, not the speech that is in accordance with everyone else's opinions.

America seems to think that whenever a tragedy occurs, whether it is a school shooting like Virginia Tech or Columbine, or a national tragedy like 9/11, that we are no longer allowed to look at the other side. We are not allowed to put ourselves in the shoes of the criminal, trying to figure out why committed these atrocities. It is fine if we want to think about it on our own, but should we voice these opinions, we are ostracized for being insensitive and setting off alarms of those who become overly paranoid.

This level of paranoia was also seen at a University in Oregon where a student was barred from a vigil for the Virginia Tech students because he wore what appeared to be an ammunition belt. The belt, made from spent bullet casings confiscated from the student, is a popular fashion accessory, and not something that can be considered a weapon. Granted, this probably was not the best choice of attire when going to a vigil for a group of people who died in a school shooting, but he was probably wearing it all day and didn’t think twice about it. Again, this is an instance where we become too afraid of what may happen, that we take people’s rights of expression away from them.

It is a terrible thing what happened at Virginia Tech, but we cannot be afraid of talking about it however we please. If the student’s comments were that out of line, then the teacher should have spoken to him in private, asking him to explain to the class what he meant. There was no need to get the police involved, giving this young person a police record, for a comment that was probably taken out of context.