From the Greensboro sit-ins of 1960 to the Gaza solidarity encampments that have sprung up recently, students have long been at the forefront of social movements. The activism that students carry out on their campuses often gets shaped and refined over time, as networks of activists share tactics, store them in collective memory, and rework them for new campaigns. In fact, it isn’t at all surprising that the tactics used by students today look similar to those of their peers from the 1980s when a wave of activism against apartheid inspired the spread of tent cities.

Student protests have also pushed institutions to change their policies. In the case of the current movement on campus climate, students are pushing universities to commit to specific changes – for example, by calling on them to become “sanctuary campuses” and to alert their communities immediately when immigration enforcement officers are nearby. Other demands include a call for schools to increase funding for African-American studies programs, and calls for their faculty members to become involved in the protests.

In general, the First Amendment protects most forms of student protest. However, public university officials can require that groups of a certain size obtain a permit to use their campus spaces, as well as regulate the volume levels in those spaces. And while they may not restrict a group’s ability to communicate their message, they can limit the use of tools like sticks that might be used as weapons, and they may regulate what kinds of signs are allowed on campus – so long as restrictions aren’t viewpoint based.