Poll: Majority of College Students Support Punishment for ‘Offensive’ Halloween Costumes

A recent poll revealed that over half of college students want to see their peers punished for wearing “offensive” Halloween costumes. The number is even higher at Ivy League and California State schools.

A survey by College Pulse has discovered that 55 percent of U.S. university students support punishing people who wear “highly offensive” Halloween costumes. The number is higher — 59 percent — among students at Ivy League students, and even higher — 65 percent — at California State schools.

“Are highly offensive Halloween costumes (such as blackface) a protected form of free speech on campus, or should students who wear them be punished?” asks the survey by College Pulse.

While the survey made mention of “blackface” — commonly seen in resurfaced photos of left-wing politicians — it remained vague in the sense that “highly offensive Halloween costumes” is subjective, especially given today’s cancel culture and seemingly prone-to-outrage society — typically more prevalent on college campuses.

The poll. which was conducted with students from 1,501 universities. showed that only 45 percent of students believe that offensive Halloween costumes are a protected form of free speech.

The survey results appear to remain consistent with a glaring number of college and university students seeming to take on the welcome notion that “hate speech,” of which its definition is ever-evolving, is not protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Bill of Rights.

A separate poll — conducted by Campaign For Free Speech — recently found that 48 percent of Americans believe that “hate speech” should be illegal, with about half of those respondents saying that the punishment for “hate speech” violations should include possible jail time, while a staggering 51 percent believe that the First Amendment is outdated and should be rewritten.

Some U.S. schools, such as Furman University, already have in their handbooks policies which claim that students can be punished for wearing offensive Halloween costumes.

Meanwhile, a number of schools around the country have attempted to be more proactive with regards to implementing political correctness on campus, by cautioning students against wearing offensive costumes, and reminding them of the “consequences” for doing so.

You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Twitter at @ARmastrangelo and on Instagram.