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The university violated its own, written procedures for handling student discipline.
They also made no attempt that I can see to identify how many members of the former chapter, and which members, participated in the song.
It would be the equivalent of disbanding the football team because a few members got in trouble.
Though it wouldn't shock me if the university's written procedures allow for the university president to act outside of the general order under extreme circumstances, there are no monetary damages available to the fraternity chapter unless the student discipline code allows for damages (which I would be shocked if it does) or damages are covered under law in another manner (which I doubt as well). Ultimately, though, with the exception of potential personal damages assignable to individual members for personal loss of property that resulted in the university's demand that the members vacate their former house so quickly, this measure fails for the same reason why other calls a lawsuit to require the university to reinstate the chapter on campus fail: standing. As there is no chapter outside of the university's actions and the members cannot claim to be a representative of a chapter whose charter has been revoked and whose individual group memberships have been terminated by the national office, what do the members expect the courts to be able to redress? Even if the courts favored the closed-chapter's argument, a ruling against the university would not lead to the chapter being reinstated as the national office has also suspended indefinitely the chapter. And as the now expelled members would have an even lesser chance at victory against the national office (these fraternity/sorority charters/by-laws generally give the national leadership very broad and powerful discretion in deciding whether to close/suspend chapters or suspend/revoke individual memberships.
And the university offering to let a re-recognized chapter (assuming that the national office lifts the chapter's suspension would be lifted) would not only be terrible for PR purposes, but is unnecessary as the expelled members don't have a case it seems. More to this point and expanding on something I mentioned above: as the students who would be seeking to have the chapter reinstated are no longer members of the fraternity itself (the national office expelled them from the organization), they would not even be allowed to file suit for such an action, and any attorney doing so on their behalf is risking formal sanction and ridicule by the courts.
The only legal recourse that affected students have against the university, in my view, deals with potential actions that the two expelled students can bring. In my view, they have an excellent first amendment case against the university.
If I was the University I'd tell em to go _________ themselves. If they want to publicly release their names and fight this battle go ahead. But remember there's repurcussions for everything. If I was the National chapter I'd tell this chapter to shut up before ruining the entire fraternities reputation.
The world already knows that most fraternities are filled with hardcore racists, so they can't really harm the reputation of the fraternity any further by suing the University of Oklahoma. The members of that fraternity have been sexually assaulting people and spreading their racist message for years, so the real question is why did it take so long for the University to shut down this hate group.
The OU Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapter considers suing the University of Oklahoma (perhaps, including OU President David Boren) over how the school handled the videoleak which had SAE members chanting expletives about lynching African-Americans and how they would never join SAE.
According to KOCO TV - Oklahoma City, Attorney Stephen Jones has been retained to represent the local SAE chapter. Why?
As Jones explains:
So the defunct OU SAE chapter is saying, "I am what I am (Hey, it was on videotape!), but don't call me what I am (a young bigot-in-training) or I'll sue!"
No doubt Attorney Stephen Jones is hopeful right-wing media will take up the boys' cause and create enough pressure on OU so they will settle the case before any trial.
Two questions:
1. Do you think the OU SAE chapter should be financially compensated by OU for how the university handled the incident?
2. If OU refuses to settle and the case goes to trial, do you think Attorney Stephen Jones' case logic will work with an Oklahoma jury - even an all-white one?
If this university receives one ounce of public funding then it is illegal for the school to expel these students for engaging in free speech. Even if this was a completely private university these expelled students should be compensated for damages to their reputation as a result of the university not supporting free speech and expelling them.
People have no balls these days. If these institutions and companies stood up to the PC police and stood up for free speech they would be commended by some of the public for not giving in.
If this university receives one ounce of public funding then it is illegal for the school to expel these students for engaging in free speech. Even if this was a completely private university these expelled students should be compensated for damages to their reputation as a result of the university not supporting free speech and expelling them.
People have no balls these days. If these institutions and companies stood up to the PC police and stood up for free speech they would be commended by some of the public for not giving in.
This, I completely agree with. Not that a I agree or disagree with the song sung, I really don't care in that respect. What I do care about is our iron clad constitution, a document that all too often needs to defend itself from the wacko agendas of the extreme left AND right. Is this song about hanging people really that different from stoning people in the Bible? If someone secretly recorded a campus Christian/Muslim meetup and they talked about stoning people (who by connection are fellow classmates), seriously, would there be the same reaction? It's different? How? Well, huh, err, ummm...
I hope they win their lawsuit and make out like bandits.
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