A conservative student serving in the student government of Loyola Marymount University as a Senator for diversity and inclusion could get impeached over old tweets. Should the impeachment become a success, it will become another example of how universities are stifling dissenting opinions.
Stephanie Martinez, Student Senator at LMU, became the subject of controversy after Agency MLU, a “progressive” news outlet, uncovered her old tweets.
“The same people advocating for rights, equality, and better conditions for illegal aliens are the same one censoring freedom of speech (a right), defaming and initiating hostility for those Americans with divergent views! Sad!” Martinez wrote in a tweet dated July 7, 2019.
Apparently, this is controversial.
Following the unearthing of those tweets, LMU students launched a petition demanding her impeachment. At press time, the petition had collected 570 signatures.
On Sunday night, during the Associated Students of Loyola University (ASLMU) weekly meeting, fellow student senator Camille Orozco brought an impeachment motion against Martinez.
“Sen. Martinez’s public statements and actions undermine the mission of inclusivity pertinent to her role as Senator for Diversity and Inclusion,” Orozco said in her complaint.
“I, Sen. Orozco, maintain that the responsibilities related to this position, are not only undermined, but completely contradicted by the impact that Sen. Martinez’s statements and actions have had among the student body.”
Martinez is disappointed with her peers for trying to silence her for her opinions.
“I’m so disappointed to see these discriminatory allegations coming from my peers on the Senate,” Martinez said, speaking to The College Fix. “All I wanted was to spread intellectual diversity on campus by giving conservatives without a voice a say in our student senate.”
“They have proven to everyone that conservatives are not welcome in student government and that the ‘tolerance’ that the left ascribes to is only meant for those that are ideologically similar to themselves, she added.
She said her impeachment would violate a non-discriminatory policy in the ASLMU constitution, which stipulates that no member will be side-lined based on their political views.
During the next ASLMU meeting, on October 11, the student body will determine the impeachment motion’s validity. If they deem it valid, members of the student body will vote to remove her, or not, in the October 18 meeting. Seventy five percent of the members have to vote for the impeachment for her to be removed.
Martinez has the support of LMU President William Donahue, who is Republican, and will testify as a witness at the impeachment hearing.
“In the event that she is removed from the ASLMU Senate, let the record show that LMU has set a precedent for schools across the country that conservatives aren’t welcome to express their opinions. All of our fears concerning the apathy towards the First Amendment on university campuses will come to fruition,” Donahue said.
Martinez’s other witness is student Chairman of the Young Americans for Freedom, Drew Alcorn.
