DeGette statement on H. Res. 927

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) released the following statement after voting against H. Res. 927:

“Hate has no place in America, and I personally disagree with the assessments these college presidents gave,” said Rep. DeGette. “I also disagree with my colleagues who think Congress should wade into policing student speech on college campuses. We cannot begin adjudicating who deserves what job on what campus or going line-by-line through universities’ codes of conduct. It’s an unserious proposition and this resolution should have never come to the floor when we have so many other pressing matters on our agenda.”

“Instead of wasting time on these culture war resolutions, we should be advancing the package that supports Ukraine and provides aid to those impacted by the conflict in Israel. I would also take this opportunity to remind my colleagues that government funding runs out in early 2024 and the Republican majority has so far refused to address this deadline in any serious way.”

H. Res. 927 would make it the official position of the House that Harvard University President Claudine Gay and Massachusetts Institute of Technology President Sally Kornbluth should resign from their posts.

Academic freedom is the “freedom to teach or to learn without interference (as by government officials),” as defined by Merriam-Webster.