USD chalk policy still in the works
University administrators and students alike are continuing to debate the USD campus chalking policy — an issue which has continued for more than a year.
Many student organizations take to the sidewalks with chalk during welcome week to recruit more members while still others chalk to exercise their right
of free speech.
Juniors Emily Massey and Megan Dundas were walking to the Wellness Center last semester when they saw messages supporting Presidential Candidate Donald Trump by North Complex.
“Initially I thought that it was funny because it’s just so dumb and petty,” Dundas said.
As much as students use chalking for beneficial purposes at USD, some were still offended by the Donald Trump rhetoric, which included sayings such as “Build a Wall” and “#StopIslam.”
A few months earlier, the student group Yotes for Life wrote sayings such as, “peace begins in the womb” and “love them both” on campus sidewalks.
These messages prompted students to start marking up campus sidewalks with comments in retaliation, some of which included obscene messages and images.
“Everyone is entitled to their own opinion,” Massey said. “Sometimes you have to keep things to yourself even if you’re strongly opinionated like that.”
After the Donald Trump and Yotes for Life sayings were chalked, talk of a policy began.
Tena Haraldson, director of marketing communications & university relations, said creating such a policy is a balancing act.
“USD is a free speech campus and we encourage expression while protecting university property, observing the law and respecting the rights of others,” Haraldson said. “The challenge is writing a rule that allows chalking by the majority of responsible people and discouraging bad behavior by a few.”
Haraldson added that when completed, the chalking policy shouldn’t infringe on
students’ rights.
SGA Vice President Michelle Novak also wants to keep student organizations’ voices heard while providing solutions if another chalking incident were to
happen again.
“I think the biggest thing that we can do is to get Facilities to wash it off, and last year we were fortunate enough that it rained and washed off on its own. We (also) do not want to restrict the chalking on campus because it is a way that student organizations use to promote (their clubs),” Novak said. “We (also) do handle their budgets, so by not allowing them to promote their events, they are also hurting SGA in the process.”
