University of Alabama Students Appeal Denial of Preliminary Injunction in Lawsuit Challenging Censorship of Campus Magazines

Read a PDF of our statement here.

Today, a group of student plaintiffs challenging the University of Alabama's suspension and termination of two student-run magazines, Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six, filed an appeal brief, urging the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit to reverse a district court's order that had denied their motion for a preliminary injunction. The requested preliminary injunction would provide immediate and temporary relief to protect the students' First Amendment rights by restoring the magazines while the case proceeds.

In the brief today, counsel for the student plaintiffs - the Legal Defense Fund, the Southern Poverty Law Center, and the law firm Arnold & Porter - ask the Eleventh Circuit to review a decision by a district court, which allows the harms from the University of Alabama's suspension of the two magazines to continue.

"Student-operated publications, like Alice, provide students with the invaluable opportunity to tell our own stories and share ideas and views with our campus community that might otherwise go unheard," said Emily Waugh (she/her), a student plaintiff in the case. "That freedom is essential to a healthy campus community, and that is why we're appealing to the Eleventh Circuit. Students should be able to write, create, and express themselves without fear that their publications will be silenced simply because a university dislikes a publication's focus on topics related to gender, sexuality, and race."

"Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six were essential to the University of Alabama's student media ecosystem. The magazines provided a space for students to find their voice, challenge ideas, and create a sense of belonging," said Jermaine Ball (he/him), a student plaintiff in the case. "We are fighting not just for us, but for the students who will come after us-because student-operated publications give students the vital opportunity to shape the conversations happening around them while ensuring that a diversity of experiences and perspectives are represented. Protecting student publications means protecting our constitutional right to be heard."

"Courts, including the Supreme Court, recognize that a public university's influence is measured by its students' creative power and intellectual quality" said Avatara Smith-Carrington (they/them), Assistant Counsel at the Legal Defense Fund. "That influence is marred by the University of Alabama's suspension of Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six, which violates the university's constitutional obligation to protect students' First Amendment rights. The suspension also continues the recent, troubling trend of censoring student speech simply because university administrators disfavor discussions that focus on issues related to race, gender, and sexuality. We hope that the Eleventh Circuit will correct the lower court's grave error and restore Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six to the University of Alabama's campus community."

On March 23, 2026, several students filed a federal lawsuit challenging the University of Alabama's suspension and termination of funding to two-student operated magazines-Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six. For several years, Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six served as student-operated publications at the University of Alabama where students could explore topics related to race, gender, sexuality, identity, and culture through writing, art, photography, and storytelling. In the lawsuit, the student plaintiffs allege that the University's suspension of the magazines was viewpoint discriminatory in violation of their rights under the First Amendment. Several days later, the student plaintiffs moved for a preliminary injunction to enjoin the University's suspension of Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six and restore the students' access to funding and resources from the university for publication of the magazines. On May 22, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama ruled that the students were unlikely to succeed on the merits of their First Amendment claim and declined to grant the requested preliminary injunction. The ruling has been criticized by student press advocates as departing from longstanding First Amendment protections for college student media.

"The suspension of Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six singles out, for unjust censorship, the students who write for and read these magazines, which reflect a diverse range of people," said Sam Boyd, senior supervising attorney (he/him), Southern Poverty Law Center. "Closing these magazines because of their editorial perspectives related to race and gender perpetuates discrimination rather than fighting it, as the university claims. We urge the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit to protect the First Amendment Rights of the students and editors at these magazines and stand up for all students at the University of Alabama and beyond."

"When we filed this lawsuit earlier this year, we made a commitment to our clients and to all students at Alabama's public universities and colleges to fight for their First Amendment rights," said Alison Mollman (she/her), Legal Director at the ACLU of Alabama. "Our appeal is a critical next step to restore the publication ofAlice and Nineteen Fifty-Six while this litigation proceeds, and we are hopeful that the Eleventh Circuit will reverse the district court's erroneous decision."

The students are represented by the Legal Defense Fund (LDF), ACLU of Alabama, and Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC).  

Read the full appellate brief.

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Founded in 1940, the Legal Defense Fund (LDF)is the nation's first civil rights legal organization. LDF has been completely separate from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) since 1957, though it was founded under the leadership of Thurgood Marshall while he was at the NAACP. LDF's Thurgood Marshall Institute (TMI) is a division of LDF that undertakes innovative research and houses LDF's archive. In all media attributions, please refer to us as the Legal Defense Fund or LDF (do not include NAACP) and refer to the Institute as LDF's Thurgood Marshall Institute or TMI.