Student Protest Over Conservative Flyers at Gettysburg College

In George Orwell’s 1945 novel Animal Farm, he famously writes, “All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others.” This sentiment seems relevant as a conservative group at Gettysburg College recently shared a video showing students tearing down promotional flyers, raising questions about the ethical stance of some proponents of “free speech.”

The issue of speech control is, unfortunately, quite common. Campus environments, particularly on social media, are often rife with reports of politically charged incidents. There are numerous videos capturing moments when leftist students disrupt speakers or deface promotional materials from conservative groups.

In one recent case, the Young America Foundation (YAF) chapter at a school in Pennsylvania invited conservative speaker Vince Ellison to an event in late November. Days ahead of the gathering, posters promoting the event were allegedly removed by protesters.

According to YAF President Tyler Seaman, such disruptions are routine. “It happens every day at our events,” he mentioned to Fox News Digital. Seaman feels that, perhaps, some students believe that the views expressed by their conservative counterparts are too divergent or even threatening.

Now, the group claims to have captured footage of one of the individuals involved in the flyer destruction. They shared this video with Fox Digital, which aired it recently. In the clip, YAF members confront the accused student.

“Are you having fun?” they ask. To which the student replies, “Yes.”

“You know that’s against university policy, right?” the YAF member presses. The student simply responds with “Okay” before becoming silent.

The YAF members proceeded to scold the student for not leaving before being caught in the act. They even suggested checking the stairwell for more ripped flyers, to which the student hesitantly replied, “I don’t know.” Eventually, the person exited the building without much further comment.

Seaman expressed frustration over what he described as the university’s indifference toward enforcing guidelines meant to protect posters from vandalism. This claim was contested by a spokesperson from the school.

For those at odds with YAF’s messaging, Seaman proposed a different approach. He encouraged critics to attend their events and engage in dialogue rather than resorting to tearing up flyers. “We want to have a dialogue,” he said.