Events and Spaces

Members of the campus community are able to organize events at many locations on campus. This section outlines how the rules for various kinds of spaces on campus apply to events, including protests and rallies. 

• Small gatherings have always occurred in many locations on campus, whether to celebrate a student’s dissertation defense, rejoice in a football victory (particularly against Cal), or to protest an invited speaker. These are permissible without additional planning or permitting unless they involve elements that would trigger the Major Events Protocol (in which case advance planning is required) or violate the Policy on Campus Disruptions (in which case they are not allowed, and should be modified in time, place or or manner to comply with those policies). These policies do not distinguish among speakers/participants on the basis of viewpoint.
• White Plaza has long served as an active hub for the widest range of speech at Stanford and the rules for that space are designed to make it easy for protests and rallies to take place there; although registration is strongly encouraged and gives groups priority for use of White Plaza, that space is also available for more spontaneous use by Stanford students, faculty, and staff for protests and rallies without advance approval between 8 a.m. and 10 p.m. (though subject to other rules such as limits on amplified sound). The university has also designated additional spaces around campus suitable for larger protests and  rallies, including East Oval Grove, which, in addition to White Plaza, is another space on campus available for spontaneous use by Stanford affiliates. Unlike White Plaza and East Oval Grove, three of the additional spaces (Meyer Green, Manzanita Field and the Panama Street Clearing) do require advance registration and approval under content and viewpoint-neutral rules to ensure adequate staffing.
• In addition, many spaces on campus have reservation and use policies. These should be applied in viewpoint-neutral ways, though some spaces are designated for specific content-related purposes. For example, Dinkelspiel Auditorium is operated by the Music Department, which can give priority to musical groups looking for performance space over other uses, though under Stanford’s policies it should not discriminate on the basis of viewpoint of the performers. 

In all locations on campus, individuals and groups must follow the instructions of university officials, including instructions to cease activity at that time and place or otherwise comply with university policy.