BU Working Group Begins Review of Window Sign and Flag Policies, Opens Community Survey

Boston University has begun a formal review of the rules governing signs and flags displayed in the outward-facing windows of university buildings, a dispute that divided the campus last spring and drew attention beyond it, according to BU Today, the university's news service.

A 10-member working group of students, faculty and staff began meeting this fall to consider the university's Time, Place and Manner restrictions. Its goal is to deliver recommendations to President Melissa Gilliam and Provost Colin Duckett about how, or whether, to update those policies. The group is formally named the University Posting Policy Working Group.

The policies at issue

Two Boston University policies set Time, Place and Manner restrictions on publications, events and demonstrations: the Publications and Publicity policy and the Events and Demonstrations policy. Last spring, questions about how those policies applied to signs and flags hanging in outward-facing windows of university buildings set off what BU Today described as a community-wide debate that eventually reached beyond BU's campuses.

In an April letter to the campus community, Gilliam announced that the university would pause enforcement of the policies to allow for what the university called more intentional and thoughtful consideration. That pause remains in effect while the working group gathers feedback, deliberates and prepares its recommendations.

"Our Boston University community has a rich history of engaging in complex and constructive conversations," Gilliam said. "It is with this tradition in mind that the University Posting Policy Working Group engages now in a robust consideration of these policies. I'm grateful to the members for their time and thoughtfulness and look forward to reviewing their recommendations."

How the group will work

Although Gilliam convened the group, it is working independently to develop its recommendations, according to the university. BU said the members were chosen to represent a broad diversity of viewpoints, experiences and disciplines.

"There are no foregone conclusions," said G. Sujin Pak, one of the group's two co-chairs and dean of the School of Theology. "In just a few meetings so far, it's evident that our members are coming into this work with a clear diversity of viewpoints, and that's good. That's how we create the conditions for a healthy discussion."

The working group plans to hold targeted listening sessions with a range of BU groups and organizations through the semester. It has also designed a survey to collect input from students, faculty and staff. The survey is open through Friday, Nov. 6. Community members whose input is not covered by the survey questions can email the group at [email protected], the university said.

Debbie Bazarsky, a working group member and director of the LGBTQIA+ Center for Faculty and Staff, welcomed the composition of the panel. "After significant campus dialogue last year about the posting policy, it is great that the policy is being reviewed by a committee that is representative of many different facets of BU campus life, and I appreciate being included," she said.

Early themes

Christopher Robertson, the group's other co-chair and a professor and N. Neal Pike Scholar in Health and Disability Law at the School of Law, said some themes have already emerged even though discussions are just beginning.

"One factor we have in mind is that a university is not just a forum for communication; it's a home for people," Robertson said. "It's a place where people have to work and live and learn. We have to be cognizant of ensuring that this environment is conducive to these things. And at the same time, as members of this community, we have to be willing to consider ideas that we may not believe in. It will be important for us, as a committee, to find that line."

Pak framed the task as a balance between the university's values and its legal obligations. "Every university must find the balance between its core values and its legal obligations to issues such as free expression," she said. "Throughout its history, I'm proud that BU has pretty consistently figured out a really beautiful way to uphold its values while maintaining that delicate balance. We are asking tough questions, and sometimes we may need to have challenging conversations about how we live into our values."

What comes next

The university has not announced a deadline for the group's recommendations. Until the review concludes, the pause on enforcement of the window sign and flag rules announced in April remains in place. Any changes would be decided by Gilliam and Duckett after they receive the group's recommendations.