In Edwards v. South Carolina (1963), the Supreme Court affirmed the right to peaceably protest, stating that students marching to protest segregation on the South Carolina State House grounds 鈥渞eflect[s] an exercise of these basic constitutional rights in their most pristine and classic form.鈥 The Court ruled the right to assemble extends to freedom of association in NAACP v. Alabama (1958), holding that these rights are 鈥渁n inseparable aspect of the 鈥榣iberty.鈥欌 More recently, courts have ruled that the freedom of students to peaceably assemble on a college campus may not be restricted to so-called 鈥渇ree speech zones,鈥 nor may administrators deny students a right to protest based on personal beliefs or viewpoints.
Freedom of assembly is the fourth inalienable right enumerated in the First Amendment of the Constitution, which means public universities have an obligation to ensure that it is protected.