Uzuegbunam v. Preczewski

Summary

In 2016, Georgia Gwinnett College officials stopped student Chike Uzuegbunam not once, but twice, from peacefully sharing his Christian faith with fellow students on his college campus. First, officials said he had to get advance permission to use one of two tiny speech zones that made up far less than 1% of the campus and were only open 10% of the week. Despite following these policies, Chike was again prevented from speaking. After ADF challenged the unconstitutional policies, Georgia Gwinnett argued that Chike’s speech should receive no constitutional protection, changed its policy, and claimed it should be able to avoid any penalty for violating Chike’s free speech rights. Two courts agreed, but the Supreme Court decided to hear Chike’s case and ruled in his favor.

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Chike Uzuegbunam was punished for speaking on Georgia Gwinnett College’s campus. His case went all the to the U.S. Supreme Court.

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May 11, 2022

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Commentary

U.S. Supreme Court should hold Georgia Gwinnett College accountable

Tyson Langhofer

January 12, 2021
My college tried to stop me from speaking about religion. Now, we’ll meet in th…

Chike Uzuegbunam

January 11, 2021
SCOTUS to decide whether constitutional rights can be violated without conseque…

John Bursch

January 11, 2021
SCOTUS campus free speech case unites adversaries in polarized times | The Coll…

Ryan Everson

October 28, 2020
Free Speech Won at Colleges in California, Ohio. It Should in Georgia, too.

Ellie Wittman & Bernadette Tasy

October 22, 2020
ADF: Supreme Court Should Rule To Protect Free Speech On Campus; This Egregious…

Kristen Waggoner

October 09, 2020
Supreme Court to decide if constitutional rights are only valuable when a price…

John Bursch

July 15, 2020
For Sharing Gospel, College Student Has Sought Justice for 3 Years - My Christi…

Sarah Kramer

June 01, 2020
College Unchastened For Saying Handing Out Pamphlets Is

Travis C. Barham

April 27, 2020
Atheists, Jews, Muslims, Catholics All Asking Supreme Court To Defend Rights My…

Chike Uzuegbunam

April 07, 2020
Constitutional rights are priceless—someone should tell the 11th Circuit

John Bursch

February 18, 2020
What Winning at the Supreme Court Means to Me—and to America

Chike Uzuegbunam

March 11, 2021
Americans Can Hold Government Accountable for Violating Religious Freedom | Rea…

Kristen Waggoner

March 17, 2021
What my win at the Supreme Court means for true freedom

Chike Uzuegbunam

April 08, 2021

Case Documents

Court

Title

Date

Trial Court

Stipulation of Dismissal

6/22/2022

Trial Court

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia Atlanta Division order

12/22/2021

U.S. Supreme Court

Opinion

3/8/2021

U.S. Supreme Court

Amicus brief in support of petitioners - American Civil Liberties Union, Americans for Prosperity Foundation, Americans United for Separation of Church and State, and Institute for Justice

9/29/2020

U.S. Supreme Court

Amicus brief in support of petitioners - American Humanist Association

9/29/2020

Additional Resources

One-page summary

Supreme Court Oral Arguments

Case Profiles

Kristen Waggoner

CEO, President, and General Counsel

As the CEO, president, and general counsel of Alliance Defending Freedom, Kristen Waggoner leads the faith-based organization in advancing every person’s God-given right to live and speak the truth in the U.S. and around the world.

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