Statement of the ACLU of Hawaiʻi on the University of Hawaii’s Response to First Amendment Concerns

Addressing Free Speech and Civil Liberties Policies on Campus

August 28, 2026 11:45 am

FREE SPEECH UH

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 28, 2026

MEDIA CONTACT

Nanea Lo, Communications Manager

Phone: (808) 766-5425 Email: [email protected]

Statement of the ACLU of Hawaiʻi on the

University of Hawaii’s Response to First Amendment Concerns

HONOLULU, Hawaiʻi — The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawaiʻi (“ACLU of Hawaiʻi”) commends University of Hawaiʻi (“UH”) President Wendy Hensel for listening to the collective voices of students, faculty, and staff in directing the immediate withdrawal of UH’s interim time, place, and manner policy.

The ACLU of Hawaiʻi also deeply appreciates and highlights the tireless efforts of the University community including the UH Faculty Senate Committee on Professional Matters, the UH Graduate Student Organization, the Associated Students of the University of Hawaiʻi, the William S. Richardson School of Law Academic Freedom Committee, and other faculty, students, and staff who, together with many community groups and activists, organized to make their voices heard. It takes considerable courage on both sides to defend our most basic fundamental and constitutional freedoms.

Prof. Eduardo Capulong, a faculty member of the William S. Richardson School of Law who also sits on the ACLU of Hawaiʻi Policy Committee, shared:

Our community’s vigilance and solidarity is truly heartening.  In the face of tremendous top-down pressure on our institutions, I hope it shows what democracy in action—openness, collaboration, accountability, shared governance—can do.

While we applaud President Hensel in seeking greater community input in developing the interim policy, we are especially grateful to her staff who invited and took the time to meet with the ACLU of Hawaiʻi legal and community engagement teams early this summer. Their good faith efforts to listen and learn of our concerns speaks highly of their desire to get the policy right and trust in a process that welcomes the voices of students, faculty, and other community groups. We look forward to continuing the conversation together.

Wookie Kim, ACLU of Hawai’i Legal Director, added:

The University made the right call to withdraw the interim policy. President Hensel deserves credit for listening to the broader university community, which spent more than a year raising these concerns before we sent our letter.

Of course, a pause is just a pause. What matters is what the revised policy looks like. We hope the University drops the 25-foot buffer zones, allows chalking and sit-ins, and recognizes that certain locations (like Bachman Hall and McCarthy Mall) are traditional public forums. A policy that does these things would preserve the University’s longstanding role as a site of protest and debate around the most important issues of the day in Hawaiʻi.

UH has a long and proud history as a beacon of light in the Pacific, from inviting the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. to speak on the Civil Rights movement to welcoming student-led demonstrations to protect Maunakea. We are confident UH will continue this tradition enshrined in its seal to mālamalama and shine as the “light of knowledge” in preserving expressive activity and celebrating Hawaii’s diversity in thought.

Salmah Y. Rizvi, ACLU of Hawaiʻi Executive Director, summarizes ACLU’s unique role:

We commend President Hensel for listening to the community and withdrawing the interim TPM policy. The University of Hawaiʻi is a special place with a proud tradition of students and faculty standing up and speaking out against the injustices of their time. The ACLU of Hawaiʻi will remain a vigilant watchdog, using all of our integrated advocacy tools of litigation, legislation, and community engagement to ensure that First Amendment freedoms are staunchly protected across the pae ʻāina, regardless of the federal political climate.

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The American Civil Liberties Union of Hawai‘i strives to build an equitable society. Our mission is to protect and promote the civil liberties and fundamental rights enshrined in the United States and Hawai‘i constitutions through litigation, legislation, and public education. We serve – and center the voices of – our impacted and vulnerable communities, regardless of background, status, or circumstance. As a non-partisan non-profit organization, we provide our services at no cost to the public, and we never accept government funds.