As part of Elon Musk’s pledge in support of free speech, his company X has played a pivotal role in protecting a University of Illinois student from disciplinary measures. The university withdrew its action against Juan David Campolargo following X’s legal intervention. Campolargo, who faced potential expulsion from campus housing over a social media post, found an ally in Musk’s platform.
X disclosed on Wednesday that the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign had reversed its decision to penalize Campolargo. The student had been under scrutiny for allegedly breaching the university’s code of conduct with a post on X about a closed university event offering free food.
From Reclaim The Net in November 2023:
“The issue centers on Campolargo’s promotion of an event on X, which he described as open with free food, but was, in fact, a private conference. This led to allegations against him for breaching the university’s code of conduct.
“Facing potential disciplinary actions like conduct probation and expulsion from campus housing, Campolargo found an ally in X. Lawyers from Schaerr Jaffe, backed by X Corp, cautioned the university in a letter dated November 14 against any punitive measures, arguing that such actions would infringe on the student’s First Amendment rights.”
X, standing behind Campolargo, hired the Schaerr Jaffe law firm to represent him at no cost and even threatened legal action against the university. The platform argued that penalizing Campolargo for his post would infringe upon his First Amendment rights.
The university is a publicly funded university and is therefore bound by the First Amendment.
