Lawsuit moves forward over mandatory student fees funding left-wing advocacy

A federal judge has handed a victory to a Minnesota graduate challenging mandatory student fees that funded political activism she opposes.

The U.S. District Court for Minnesota ruled that Students United, an organization funded by student fees at Minnesota State universities, can face accountability for allegedly violating students’ First Amendment rights.

The decision allows plaintiff Tayah Lackie’s case against Students United to move forward while dismissing claims against St. Cloud State University and the Minnesota State Board of Trustees.

“This is a great first step towards bringing this issue to light,” said Lackie. “I’m so thankful that I have a wonderful team working alongside me to fight for our First Amendment rights as students.”

Lackie, a recent St. Cloud State graduate, said she worked part-time and finished college debt-free only to discover she’d been forced to subsidize a group pushing for the elimination of student debt.

Graduate says she was forced to fund advocacy she opposes

“This decision confirms what the Supreme Court held in Janus v. AFSCME — the First Amendment protects individuals when the government gives third-party private actors the power to force people to fund their political speech,” said Jeffrey Schwab of the Liberty Justice Center, which filed the lawsuit alongside the Upper Midwest Law Center.

Students United’s political advocacy included a project called “Fck Student Debt,” which advocated for abolishing all student debt.

“The university never told me I was paying fees for Students United’s political speech. I don’t agree with a lot of what Students United says, and I shouldn’t have to pay for it,” Lackie said in an earlier statement.

Students United promotes left-wing causes

Students United claims to represent all 65,000 students in the Minnesota State University system and is funded in part through fees collected from every student as a condition of enrollment.

The group has openly supported left-wing causes like Black Lives Matter, “land acknowledgement” practices, and “training” on “resisting bias.”

“All institutions and the system must evaluate their contracts, partnerships, and investments, divest from those enabling harm and violence, and actively invest into our communities. This must include city and county police contracts and partnerships,” the organization said in a June 2020 letter.

The group also advised students not to answer questions from immigration agents and to avoid opening their doors unless agents present a warrant.

The court’s ruling determined that while Students United is technically a private organization, it qualifies as a state actor in this case because state law gives it a special right to collect fees and it works jointly with the government to do so.

“Forcing students to fund political speech they disagree with as a condition of attending a public university is a violation of the First Amendment, plain and simple,” said Alexandra Howell of the Upper Midwest Law Center. “With this decision, we can now move forward in this case and hold Students United accountable for collecting money from students to fund its political advocacy.”

The case now heads to discovery. Alpha News reached out to Minnesota State for comment. A spokesperson told the outlet: “We are pleased that the court dismissed the claims against the Minnesota State defendants.”

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