"When something important is going on, silence is a lie." This statement was seen on sidewalks, bulletin boards and chalkboards throughout last week as students, faculty and staff questioned its appearance and meaning. "5/22/08" marked a day at Otterbein in which freedom of speech was encouraged. As the non-speaking smiley face took to sidewalks Monday evening, students walking to class on Tuesday were left wondering what the symbol meant.When stopped and asked of its meaning, students applying chalk and flyers were instructed not to respond with an answer, but to encourage students to remain curious and stay alert to their surroundings. This project, formed by a group of COMM 499 students, was named F.R.E.E., standing for Fighting Repression of Expression Everywhere. After applying for, and receiving, the Louis B. Inglehart First Amendment Award, which is given for free speech education, students and advisors were provided with the funds to place this project into action. Advisors Hillary Warren and Chris Reynolds of the communication department were very proud of those involved as the project results were seen at 33 Collegeview on Thursday afternoon. A rally commenced with the display of banners that students had written on, flyers from a "copy-cat," group and formal explanation as to what was going on. The final component of the campaign came with the switch of Facebook to a site created by F.R.E.E. discussing free speech regulations and the application of those regulations to students at Otterbein. This was done to prove the point of what rights students do and do not have when attending a private college, and to bring attention to the importance of free speech. "People were really upset when Facebook was shut off," said senior business major Kimberly Southammavong. "This really showed me the reality of what little freedom of speech we have." t&c;
F.R.E.E. re-routes Facebook
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