Students ? 2, Southworth ? 0

Students of the University of Wisconsin, you have reason to celebrate.

The United States Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that your speech will not be silenced. They upheld your right to determine how your money goes back to your services and your organizations.

Scott Southworth, a UW law student who felt that his money should not go to groups he ideologically opposed, filed this landmark case in 1996. He said student government had “unbridled discretion” in allocating fees. In 1999, the case went all the way to the United States Supreme Court and Southworth lost in a unanimous decision. He appealed the decision, and Tuesday lost yet again. Unfailingly, the courts have ruled that ASM’s system is fair to groups and to students.

UW-Madison has one of the best systems of fee-allocation in the country, and ASM has the court cases to prove it. ASM’s “viewpoint-neutral” system of funding requires financial committees to make funding decisions based on the service a group provides, and not on the viewpoints espoused by the group. In the words of the 7th Circuit Court, “the numerous criteria set forth [by ASM], coupled with the appeals process, are narrowly drawn and reasonable, and thus sufficiently limit the university’s discretion so as to satisfy the requirements of the First Amendment.”

On many campuses, political, ideological, and religious speech would be silenced. Many campuses around the nation do not place as much value on outside-the-classroom learning to fund it, or, if they do, the administration regulates it. But not at UW.

Here, you have the right to be elected or appointed to committees that allocate fees. Here, you have the right to join student organizations or start your own and receive funding for it regardless of the beliefs you hold. Here, you can exercise your First Amendment right to free speech and contribute your opinions and beliefs to the marketplace of ideas.

Many have said that this case has opened the door for conservative student organizations that previously felt disenfranchised on a liberal campus. I say, more power to them, and I look forward to seeing their message on campus.

Southworth has said that the ruling makes it possible for students at UW or any other college to sue the university on how they fund student groups. This has always been true. I say, bring it on. Our system has been to the United States Supreme Court and back, and it has consistently proved to be foolproof and fair.

Now is your turn to get involved and take advantage of ASM’s fair system of funding. Join a group, or start your own. Attend a lecture at the Union, join a rally on Library Mall, get some tutoring from GUTS, grab a ride home from SAFERide, participate in the Homecoming parade, and take some condoms from the Campus Women’s Center. Student fees are here for your use, and Tuesday’s decision only proves that your money is going to groups that serve you.

This ruling closes the book on the legality of the student fee system. It’s legal. It’s fair. You, the students of UW, have won. Congratulations.

Faith Kurtyka ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in English. She is a member of SSFC and the co-chair of the Student Fee Defenders.