I need a big Rolling Eyes Emoticon right here!

--------------------------

EDINBURG, Texas – An unidentified professor at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley removed a directive in his class syllabus asking students to refrain from saying “God bless you” after the document sparked outrage online.

Students at the university posted an image of a class syllabus to social media last week that specifically asks students to “Please refrain from saying, ‘God bless you’ during the classes and exams,’” KGBT reports.

The news site reports images of the syllabus posted online were viewed by thousands and drew scorn from many who believe the ban on “God bless you” infringes on their religious and free speech rights outlined in the Constitution.

nogodblessyou“It’s kind of ridiculous, first amendment, freedom of religion. It’s there. We shouldn’t have to block that out of school,” student Marcos Villarreal said.

“You shouldn’t have a boundary on what you believe in, especially in the classroom,” student John Taylor added. “I would’ve not said anything, but it would’ve bothered me because as a common courtesy, I say God bless you to people who sneeze.”

University officials wouldn’t discuss the syllabus on camera, but did provide a statement that essentially backs the professor’s authority to ban what he deems necessary.

“The professor’s syllabus sought to identify examples of potentially disruptive behavior the professor believed could hinder the classroom learning environment, including the use of cellphones,” the statement read.

The God bless you ban is certainly not the first or only college directive that’s raised eyebrows or sparked public outrage this school year.

At Washington State University, professor Rebecca Fowler told students in her “Introduction to Comparative Ethics Studies” class that they’ll be docked a point on their papers for every time they use the term “illegal alien” or “illegals” in writing assignments, Campus Reform reports.

Flower’s syllabus states that her course guides student to “come to realize how white privilege functions in everyday social structures and institutions.”

Another WSU professor, Selena Breikss, drew outrage over rules for her “Women & Popular Culture” course that prohibit students from using common descriptors like “male” and “female” she considers “oppressive and hateful language.”

Other bad words outlined in Breikss’s syllabus include “illegal aliens,” “tranny,” “The Man” and “colored people,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

“If I see it or hear it, I will correct it in class since it can be a learning moment for many students,” according to the syllabus, which was attributed to Lester Breikss by the Times.

“Repeated use of oppressive and hateful language will be handled accordingly – including but not limited to removal from the class without attendance or participation points, failure of the assignment, and – in extreme cases – failure for the semester.”

Yet a third WSU professor is also offending students by requiring white students to defer to minority students “if they want to do well in this class,” according to professor John Streamas’s syllabus for “Introduction to Multicultural Literature” cited by Campus Reform.

“In the guidelines in his syllabus, Streamas elaborates that he requires students to ‘reflect’ on their grasp of history and social relations ‘by respecting shy and quiet classmates and by deferring to the experiences of people of color,” the news site reports.

“Streamas – who previously generated controversy by calling a student a ‘white shitbag’ and (declaring) that WSU should stand for ‘White Supremacist University’ – also demands that students ‘understand and consider the rage of people who are victims of systemic injustice.’”

Ari Cohn, lawyer with the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, was quick to point out the irony of the restrictive syllabus’ for Campus Reform.

“It is notable that one of the syllabus provisions warn: ‘The subject material of this class is sensitive and controversial. Strive to keep an open mind.’ How are students supposed to approach these sensitive and controversial materials at all, let alone keep an open mind, if they have to fear that a misconstrued statement, or one that unreasonably offends a classmate will lead to a grade reduction or even removal from class?” Cohn questioned.