Free food in exchange for your First Amendment rights
Over 100 students, including the event staff, attended the First Amendment Free Food Festival where participants symbolically signed away their First Amendment rights in order to receive free food.
The festival took place on Oct. 21 at 12:30 p.m. For an hour students who entered the fake country of “The Peoples Republic Kingdom of GCSU” were ruled by dictators and their “goons.” When students entered PRK of GCSU they were given a green armband along with a card that contained the only subject they could talk about. If participants deviated from the subject on their card they were kicked out of the event. Students were also told to get out of their chairs and move to another table, compliment the dictators, run around the event, do jumping jacks, roll on the ground and even give away their food.
“I was really excited to see this great of a turn out,” said Claire Dykes, editor-in- chief of The Colonnade, “it was good to see all the students, The Union Recorder, student media, and all the other RSOs in attendance to support this event.”
The festival was run by volunteers who posed as protesters, dictators and “goons” of PRK. Student organizations, including The Colonnade, The Debate Society, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Sigma Alpha Omega and WGUR, also were in attendance representing freedom of speech, religion and press.
The event staff was in charge of cracking down on displays of First Amendment rights. Bouncers guarded the entrance to PRK of GCSU and did not let anyone in or out of the event. The designated area, which was located on GCSU’s free speech zone, had tables and chairs, but the participants did not have the freedom to choose where to sit or what they could eat. In fact participants did not have the right to “assemble” as they wish, or “petition” for the staff to address their grievances be heard because their was no one at the complaint table to hear them. They were also not able to express “religion” in any way including jewelry and T-shirts.
Certain “law-abiding” citizens were allowed to enter the “dictators lounge” where they could relax and not be pressured by dictators.
Protesters walked around outside the event protesting different rights related to the First Amendment while encouraging students to come enjoy free food.
Sodexo and World of Wings donated $850 of catering services and food including pizza, wings and even refried beans.
The festival is a project of the Society of Professional Journalists and has been held at six other university campuses across the nation. The purpose of the festival is to encourage students to appreciate, recognize and exercise their First Amendment rights. In fact, one out of four college students in the United States are unable to name any of the freedoms protected by the First Amendment, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education.
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Oct 23 2009. Filed under News.
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