As a new semester begins, so do campus protests. This week at Columbia University protesters disrupted a History of Modern Israel class while handing out fliers. At the University of Washington, a scheduled speaking event being protested was cancelled after a false fire alarm caused evacuation of the building.

Heterodox Academy supports the rights of all students and faculty members — on all sides of an issue — to use publicly available spaces on campus to express their views while following their university’s lawful time, place, and manner regulations.

As we have stated before regarding campus protest: The free speech of such protesters is rightly protected; the material disruption of university functioning, such as disrupting classes and scheduled campus events, is not.

University leaders have the responsibility to enforce rules that govern the time, place, and manner of expression. Such rules are essential to promoting free inquiry and expression on campus. Disrupting campus functioning prevents learning and consideration of ideas.