April 17, 2026

 

To Tarheels and Friends,

 

​

Earlier this week, UNC AFSA condemned a statement released last week by Senior Vice President James Orr regarding several campus April Fools communications. (Read our statement here.) We joined other free speech supporting organizations, most notably the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), in calling for the University to retract Orr’s statement and reaffirm its support for student free expression.

 

Yesterday, UNC did just that.

 

In an update to the student affairs website, the University declared its commitment “to upholding the First Amendment rights of our students and student groups to engage in free expression.” It confirmed that it “is not investigating any student or student group” and explained that it “in no way intended to chill free speech on our campus.” The university then reiterated that “We support the First Amendment rights of all students and student groups to exercise those rights unburdened by the University. As a public university, we will both uphold the core principle of free speech and care for our community at the same time.”

 

The University now needs to post its update to its social media platforms and email the update to the University listserv to ensure all students and faculty receive the message. The original statement carried the full weight and visibility of the administration. A quiet website update will do little to mitigate the chilling effect the University created.

 

Nonetheless, we applaud the administration for heeding the calls for retraction. This is a good first step in reestablishing an environment in which students feel free to express their opinions.

 

We would have liked to see the University go on to apologize to the students whose speech they had castigated. In the wake of the University’s original statement, those students reportedly have received multiple death threats and may be facing career repercussions. There is a lesson there: when emotions run high about controversial subjects, the administration’s role is to act as a calming influence. It certainly should not inflame the situation.

 

Thank you to Chancellor Roberts and others who are working to realign the University with its model policies protecting the free speech of students and faculty and restraining the administration from inserting itself into the campus debate. We hope this mistake will be addressed with concrete steps to avoid a recurrence.

UNC AFSA’s mission is straightforward: To promote and defend free speech, academic freedom, and viewpoint diversity at UNC-Chapel Hill. We will continue to be vigilant in pursuing those principles.