Pointer, et al. v. Phelps, et al. (University of Alabama – Suspension of Black and Female Student Magazines

On March 23, 2026, eight University of Alabama students filed a federal lawsuit against the University of Alabama Board of Trustees and university officials, challenging the December 1, 2025 suspension of the student magazines Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six. The plaintiffs alleged that the university engaged in viewpoint discrimination and violated their First Amendment rights by defunding and shutting down the publications based on their editorial focus and the communities they served. The complaint stated that both magazines were open to all students and did not restrict participation based on race, gender, or other protected characteristics. It further alleged that the suspensions disrupted internships, mentorship programs, and other opportunities for student journalists. The plaintiffs sought declaratory and injunctive relief, reinstatement of the publications, and attorney’s fees. The students were represented by the Southern Poverty Law Center, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, the ACLU of Alabama, and Arnold & Porter.

University officials suspended and revoked funding for Alice, a lifestyle, fashion, and wellness magazine primarily focused on women, and Nineteen Fifty-Six, which focused on Black culture, Black excellence, and Black student experiences, on December 1, 2025. The university cited a July 2025 memorandum from then-U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi concerning diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and the use of ostensibly neutral criteria as potential “unlawful proxies” for discrimination. University officials said the publications’ demographic focus raised concerns about compliance with federal guidance and stated that student media programs receiving university funding needed to be accessible to all students. The university planned to replace the publications with a general-interest student magazine. Both magazines’ Fall 2025 issues were their final issues under the university-funded programs.

After the suspensions, students and supporters organized petitions and protests, while Media Alumni Seeking to Highlight Equity and Diversity (MASTHEAD), an organization of University of Alabama alumni, raised funds to support independent publication of the magazines. Students subsequently published independent successor publications, Selene and Sixty-Three, in April 2026. The university also developed a new general-interest publication, Druid.

On May 22, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama denied the plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction seeking to reopen the magazines while the lawsuit proceeded. The court held that the plaintiffs had not demonstrated a likelihood of success on their First Amendment claims. Among other things, the court treated the magazines as university speech rather than independent student speech and concluded that the university’s decision was based on the publications’ demographic focus rather than an intent to suppress a particular viewpoint.

The students appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit on June 15, 2026. In August, the plaintiffs asked the Eleventh Circuit to reverse the district court’s ruling, arguing that Alice and Nineteen Fifty-Six constituted independent student speech and that the university’s actions conflicted with First Amendment precedent protecting student publications from viewpoint discrimination. The plaintiffs also requested oral argument.

On September 2, 2026, the Student Press Law Center, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, Associated Collegiate Press, College Media Association, and Society of Professional Journalists filed an amicus brief urging the Eleventh Circuit to reverse the district court. The coalition argued that the lower court’s treatment of the magazines as government speech could undermine First Amendment protections for student media at public colleges. The appeal remains pending.