Describes a policy, adopted by Stanford Students, which restricts certain types of free speech and examines whether this policy conflicts with the first amendment or is a just application of John Stuart Mill’s harm principle.
Stanford Students adopted a policy that made personally vilifying expressions an offense subject to penalties. The policy described outlawed expressions as “…words or non-verbal symbols…commonly understood to convey direct and visceral hatred or contempt for human beings on the basis of their sex, race, color, handicap, religion, or national or ethnic origin. This paper examines whether this policy should be ruled a violation of the First Amendment’s right to free speech or whether it is a legitimate application of John Stuart Mill’s harm principle.