In 2019 the Alabama Governor Kay Ivey enacted Alabama’s Campus Free Speech Act which was meant to protect the ability for students to practice their first amendment rights on campus. This act was ignored however by the University of Alabama system particularly the campus in Huntsville. In 2021 The YAL Chapter at the University of Alabama Huntsville was repeatedly shut down from speaking on campus events about guns, economic responsibility, and constitutional accountability. They were constantly denied under the guise of needing to apply for a permit to speak and only being allowed to speak in Free speech Zones on campus.

The policy required students to share their views on certain topics in specified speech zones and request approval to speak days in advance. And because the permits were subject to the university’s discretionary approval, administrators could pick and choose which events and viewpoints were allowed on campus. With the chapter unable to speak on campus, Chapter President Joshua Greer reached out to YAL’s Student Rights Department who then Connected them with Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) .

ADF then began the long and arduous process of battling the University of Alabama in the Madison County District Court. The case made its way to the Alabama Supreme court where the court sided with the YAL chapter citing the Schools policies as illegal. On Monday April 3rd 2023, as outlined in the settlement agreement, the Circuit Court of Madison County issued a consent order on Monday, stipulating that the case will be closed upon the university’s revision of its policy. The updated policy not only removes “speech zones” and the prerequisite for prior permission but also does away with provisions that allow administrators to reject speech based on the speaker’s viewpoint. This allowed over 30,000 students on campus to speak freely and practice their First amendment Rights