Texas student groups sue to block new state law limiting campus protests and free speech

A coalition of Texas university student groups has sued to overturn a new state law designed to limit campus protests, calling the legislation an unconstitutional ban on a "staggering amount" of protected speech. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) filed the suit Wednesday in Austin federal court on behalf of the student groups. The petition seeks to shut down Senate Bill 2972, a Republican-championed measure that gives public universities' governing boards the power to limit where protests can take place on campus and sets blanket bans on when students can engage in free speech activities.