Free Speech on OU's College Green

On November 3, 2006 students at Ohio University (OU) took to the War Memorial on College Green to protest the War in Iraq by holding a vigil for fallen American soldiers and Iraqi civilians. Over winter break a student leader was sent a letter to his home outlining how the actions of his group, the newly reorganized local chapter of Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), violated University speech/ ‘use of outdoor space’ policies. On February 2, 2007 these students consolidated their efforts with other students and returned to the War Memorial to protest the idea of ‘free speech zones’ and to highlight the lack of a public forum for the student voice. Nationwide, university administrators have introduced similar policies that place geographical restrictions on speech activities by regulating where these activities take place. Free speech zones on campuses across the country have received national attention in the last decade in the popular press as well as in scholarly writing.

College Green at OU has a long tradition as a forum for the University community, but yet in recent years has been regulated by zoning policies. According to students involved in the activities on February 2, the rally was about the larger goal of finding a forum where students’ voices would be recognized and heard. Following the tradition passed down from their predecessors from the 1970’s, students have used, and continue to use, College Green as a forum for expressing and exercising their freedom of speech. See figures 2 and 3 below for scenes depicting the use of the College Green as a forum for the exchange of ideas in both the 1970s and in 2007.

After witnessing the February 2 protest/rally my interest was piqued and I decided to take this on as a project. On that day I was walking across College Green on my way to a local cafe, entering the Green from the Southeast corner near Galbreth Chapel. Upon entering the Green I noticed a University official speaking with passersby about how he was just making sure nothing got out of hand. Also there were two uniformed policeman standing at attention – one at the foot of the stairs of Chubb Hall and the other on the West Portico of Memorial Auditorium.

I walk through this place everyday; I consider it to be a ‘public square’. Never had I seen or felt such a presence of authority there. I had not yet fully contemplated the meaning of this place or the rules – both spoken and unspoken – which exist to regulate interaction in its spaces. As I approached the War Memorial I began to hear the speeches by the different student activists. One of those students, I would find out later, was the SDS member who had received the official letter. I watched for twenty or thirty minutes. The same official that I had passed by back near Cutler Hall approached and spoke to other faculty and staff, who watched from a distance, reiterating what he had told the others – that he was there to make sure nothing got out of hand. Never did the official attempt to break up the event. Other people commented about how the students were ‘trying to recreate the 70’s’.

dérive

2/3/07 Sun to Cloud
Arctic wind sweeping through.
Flip coin to start at Court/Washington.
Flip coin to go left. L-R-R.

Circling around alleyways of uptown. Film students near Wendy's dumpster.
Why are there not any Free Speech murals - large paintable bulletin boards to write whatever it is you need to.
Guts of uptown - back street alleyways. Circle around again LRR.
End at Red Brick house.

Athens walk

1/27/07 Cloudy
From Public Library
on Lincoln where sidewalk gives way to tree.

Elmwood, the sidewalk ends where the houses are taxed less.

Lost Cat, Gone Again.

Falling Rocks. Where was the point from where I saw what is my first lasting memory of Athens? Where was all that looting?

Back to Mt Zion Baptist Church. Wet phonebooks and cranberry juice.

A New Starting Point

Athens, OH dérive - January 27th, 2007 - 45 degrees F - 4:10 p.m.

Start: Athens Library - Home St and Lincoln St
Decided on Second Left and First Right algorithm.

Head down Lincoln St following....

2nd Left - onto Meadow Lane into a small housing complex with identical duplex homes. Two rows of homes. Homes appear very uniform. Built for affordability and utility. Due to the "U" path of the road, our next Right is onto Lincoln. This would take us back to the Library parking lot which we would exit and come back down Lincoln and take a second left onto Meadow Lane. We've entered a loop. Rather than enter the Library parking lot we follow the curve and take second Left onto Elmwood Dr.
1st Right - onto Lorene Ave.
2nd Left - onto E. State St.
1st Right - quick Right onto Ransom St. E. State Street divides the neighborhoods.
Forced Left - onto McGuffey Ln.
2nd Left - onto Tulane St. which is a split street, but both called Tulane St.
1st Right - back onto E. State St.
2nd Left - onto S. Shannon St. back into starting point neighborhood.
1st Right - onto Elmwood, a bricked road with large brick homes.
2nd Left - back onto E. State St. again!
1st Right - onto small, steep Merkle St. We might be off E. State for good now, and back into predominately college housing.
2nd Left and forced - onto Grosvenor St.
1st Right - up small, alley-like Fort St. Turns into a larger street and follows along top of hill and leads back down to....
2nd Left - Congress Street.

We end on Congress Street and Carpenter Street by Mt. Zion church.

Originally I thought starting at by the Library we would explore the adjacent neighborhood much more but with skipping the first left, it takes us a bit further away than I expected. This is a small area. Second turns may often not happen on some of the streets. We need to decide a standard rule for these situations to follow. Or do we decide each separate dérive and let the path take us as it goes?

Different Toss, Same Algorithm

Athens, OH dérive- January 24th, 2007 - 31 degrees F



Start: Ark and Mound
1st Coin Toss: Heads start down Mound - Tails start down Ark. Tossed Heads.
2nd Coin Toss: Heads take a Left - Tails take a Right. Tossed Tails.

1st Left, 1st Right Algorithm

1st Left - onto shortcut alley.
1st Right - onto Carpenter Street shortway back towards Mound.
Next Left - back onto Mound
Next Right - onto main part of Carpenter

I just ended up where I would have if I had walked straight down Mound.

Next Left - what I think is an alley off of Carpenter but it turns into a parking lot. Look around and take some pictures. Walk back out to Carpenter.
Repeat Left - onto 1st Street. I've never been on this street yet it's so close to home. Steep street. No sidewalk. Cemetary on the left.
Next Right - Walker Street. Still no sidewalk. No Outlet sign ahead but....
Next Left - I turn before entering the No Outlet. Interesting road layout. Two lefts onto roads nearly parallel. I take the 1st left according to algorithm. I'm not really sure what road I'm on. West Hills Road above.

The two roads combined again.

Next Right - onto Slaughter Road.
Next Left - onto Rardin Avenue. Quite road with 70's style homes. Seems as if it is a thru street for traffic.
Forced to turn Left onto Schafer. Sidewalk starts.
Next Right - onto Clarke Street.
Next Left - onto Central Avenue. Pass West Elementary. A few kids sledding.
Next Right - onto West State Street which leads directly to the power plant and no outlet. I take a Left instead. I will take Next Right due to forced Left. Pass the infamous Miller's Chicken.
Next Right - back onto Schafer Street. Pass a restaurant (Mistretta's) and see a new store, Beads & Things. The University Commons on the Right.
Next Left - Washington Street. Passed the West End Tavern - whatever happened to West End Tavern? Lots of alleys on the Left but none on the Right. I pass the girl who was running he camera from the lecture las night.
Next Right - onto Maple Street. Cross paths with old man I passed on West Hills Street. Is he on a dérive too?
Next Left - into an alley. I think twice about going down it. Maybe it's another parking lot, or a place I'm not suppose to be.
Next Right - another alley with two loudly whining beagles.
Next Left - onto Byard Street. Quiet but void of office building and storage?
Next Right - Smith Street. Very quick and then a turn onto....
Next Left - Foster Place. A abandoned looking, very large home on the Right.
Forced Right - Interesting homes across from each other. One is very run down and the other is a brand new apartment type building.
Next Right - onto Union Street.
Next Left - onto Factory Street. Now out of neighborhood and into Ohio University facility buildings.
Next Right - Moore Street. Feels more like an alley or thruway than a road.
Next Left - onto S. Schafer Street. Bank on the left and practice fields on the right. Hospital after fields. Following the river and bike path.

End at Richland and Schafer.

dérive in Athens

First dérive in Athens, OH. January 20
32 degrees F
2:50 PM to 4:00 PM

Leave from corner of Ark and Mound. Out Ark (coin toss tails). Take left (coin toss heads).

1st left, first right algorithm. Back alleys down off W. State
shotgun row houses. Public graffiti.
4 benches outside Baker
busyness of campus

VOID at Maya Lin

Border between machines (cars) and speed and
pedestrian non-friendliness AND
campus walking windy roads where cars can't go fast.

Cross the Hocking. Right/Left. Ridges. Circle around.