SPOKANE, Wash. — Tuesday, the University of Idaho was a leading topic of the conversation surrounding abortion, both on a national and local level.
In a Reproductive Rights Task Force meeting, President Joe Biden was joined by other members of his cabinet and healthcare providers who detailed what they called the "chilling" impact that strict abortion bans are having on women and doctors.
"Now, officials at the University of Idaho said they should stop providing contraception, as was mentioned by the vice president," President Biden stated. "In fact, they told the university staff that they could get in trouble just for talking or telling students about where they get their birth control. Folks, what century are we in? I mean, what are we doing? I respect everyone's views in the personal decisions they make, but my Lord. We're talking about contraception here, it shouldn't be that controversial."
Also raising issue with how the policy limits speech is University of California-Davis law professor Mary Ziegler. Ziegler will be leading a discussion at the University of Idaho around abortion rights in a post-Dobbs world.
She said after reading the university's policies, she believes they are unconstitutional.
“Generally, it's not constitutionally acceptable state administrators mandate neutrality or chill discussion about something like abortion," Ziegler said. "There are a variety of reasons for that. Universities are generally places where the courts want to see more of a free exchange of ideas. The courts, too, are generally worried about restrictions on speech that focus on the content of the ideas expressed or the viewpoint of the ideas expressed in the university's policy seems to cross both of those lines."
The University of Idaho has not yet outlined future details on policy enforcement, but Ziegler said she had some questions about the call for 'instructor neutrality' in classroom discussions.
"It's sort of unclear exactly what does neutrality mean," Ziegler said. "Balanced in the sense of you hear from people with different views? Or does it mean that no one can have a view at all? And if that's what it means, it will be hard, I think for faculty to implement it, because they won't really understand when something is or isn't neutral.”
The risk with these policies, she said, is student learning.
“It's from an exchange of ideas with people with whom you don't agree, like, that's how you build empathy," Ziegler explained. "It's how you open your mind to new ideas. And if you can't, because either you or your classmates or your teacher are afraid of running up against some policy, your learning experience is going to be less rich.”
She said she expects these policies to be challenged in court but also said the people who carry the most weight in fighting them will be those in the University of Idaho community.
In Tuesday's meeting, President Biden told other colleges not to consider enacting similar policies.
What happens next, specifically with the University of Idaho, is unclear.
But, U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said there will be resources that instruct students on how to file a complaint with their school or with the education department's office for civil rights if they encounter discrimination.
DOWNLOAD THE KREM SMARTPHONE APP
DOWNLOAD FOR IPHONE HERE | DOWNLOAD FOR ANDROID HERE
HOW TO ADD THE KREM+ APP TO YOUR STREAMING DEVICE
ROKU: add the channel from the ROKU store or by searching for KREM in the Channel Store.
Fire TV: search for "KREM" to find the free app to add to your account. Another option for Fire TV is to have the app delivered directly to your Fire TV through Amazon.
To report a typo or grammatical error, please email webspokane@krem.com.