The battle over what is protected under the banner of free speech came to University of Maryland on Monday evening.

WASHINGTON — A battle over free speech is being waged on college campuses nationwide, including the University of Maryland at College Park. Students, faculty and staff gathered to discuss what is protected under the banner of free speech in a crowded library meeting room on Monday evening.

Some students argued that people should be punished for what they say as they would be for actions they took.

“We’re going to hold people accountable for the things that they do, then we need to hold people more accountable for the things that they say,” one attendee said.

Others argued that curbing free speech could do more harm than good.

“If you force ideas to go underground, then they are not actually addressed, they are not actually combated at the root,” another attendee said.

Campus administrators stressed that there would be no curbs on free speech. However, the university acknowledged that hate speech and strings of racist incidents across area universities can create an unsafe environment for students and that the campus must be more inclusive and welcoming.

University officials hope to develop policies to allow students to better confront hate speech without limiting free speech.

Copyright © 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.