Dear Governor Abbott,

Thank you for your letter to President Turner yesterday on behalf of Young Americans
for Freedom and students at SMU concerned for free speech. We are honored and
grateful that you have chosen to support us as we seek to remember our countrymen
murdered on 9/11/2001.

As you know, President Turner rebuffed your request to allow us to host our 9/11
Memorial in its customary location. His response effectively accused us of providing
false information regarding Dallas Hall Lawn to you and to the media. However, he
neglected to respond to ours and your fundamental concern: preventing students from
prominently displaying their patriotism, their ideas and convictions, and their love of
country.

You rightly identified Dallas Hall Lawn as the traditional place of honor. Thousands of
students pass by the historic heart of our campus, Dallas Hall, every single day. You
would be hard-pressed to find an SMU student claiming there was a more prominent
place on campus. However, our University continues to iterate its priority of preventing
coercion and harassment. We believe prioritizing sensitivity over honesty, freedom,
and patriotism is shameful.

This particular argument is relevant to the larger conversation regarding free speech on
university campuses across our nation. SMU has repeatedly mentioned protecting
students from triggering, coercive, and harassing messages on campus. We have
seen universities across the country implement many policies that restrict free speech
and expression under the same pretenses.

Our republic and our education thrive on civil disagreement. That is as true now as for
all the 241 years of our nations history. Especially at an institution whose mission is to
stand for education and the pursuit of truth. All of us, conservatives and liberals, stand
united in our commitment to free speech because we know how important it is.

We intend to continue to pressure our administration to allow our 9/11 memorial and
other demonstrations of free expression on the lawn at the heart of our university. We
would be very grateful for your continued support of our efforts.

Sincerely,

Grant WolfChairman and Founder, SMU Young Americans for Freedom