Colleges Nationwide Enforce Strict COVID Rules… Except During BLM Protests
Despite imposing bans on almost all other forms of large gatherings, and applying harsh punishments to those who disobey such bans, colleges and universities appear reluctant to call out student protesters for violating their COVID-19 safety policies.
Common trends among university coronavirus guidelines include mandates to remain at least six feet away from others whenever possible and restrictions on the number of people who can be in a given space at a given time. But recent Black Lives Matter protests on college campuses, inspired by a larger national movement aimed at combating perceived racial injustices, seldom comply with these requirements.
Many schools, such as Ohio State University and the University of Vermont, have gone as far as to suspend students who violate such rules.
Such punishments, 330 at the University of Missouri alone, are often handed down after students are found guilty of doing things like ignoring mask mandates, attending parties, or bringing guests into residence halls. Though they appear to also violate university policy, there has been no such equivalent crackdown on student protests.
