{"id":128349,"date":"2026-01-22T22:14:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T22:14:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/128349\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T22:14:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T22:14:06","slug":"sister-cindys-preaching-at-usf-shows-free-speech-is-alive-and-well","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/128349\/","title":{"rendered":"Sister Cindy\u2019s preaching at USF shows free speech is alive and well"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"<\/a>While Sister Cindy may be preaching questionable things, she is a sign that free speech is thriving on USF\u2019s campus. ORACLE PHOTO\/DYLAN SABOL<\/p>\n

If you were on the USF Tampa campus on Thursday, you may have noticed a large crowd gathered in front of Cooper Hall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A majority were anticipating the arrival of Cindy Smock, known on social media<\/a> as \u201cSister Cindy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Smock is a Christian evangelist preacher who travels across the country preaching her beliefs on her \u201cHo No Mo\u201d Revolution tour<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is the fourth year in a row that Smock has returned to USF<\/a> to spread her message of celibacy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Despite mixed reactions from more than 100 students in attendance, her presence is a sign that free speech is alive and well in Florida.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While Smock preaches messages some would characterize as prejudiced and extreme, the soundtrack of laughter and whispered jokes makes her message feel like a joke.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Many students look on at Smock with an eagerness akin to watching a car crash in real time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ethan Rivera, a freshman nursing major, said he decided to hang around Cooper Hall during lunchtime to see if Smock was \u201ctruly\u201d going to preach.<\/p>\n

Still, Rivera encountered a woman who was able to get college students to eagerly volunteer to read the Bible in hopes of getting a coveted \u201cHo No Mo\u201d button.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like people are only going there for entertainment and for laughs and humor, but I don\u2019t think they\u2019re really going to listen,\u201d Rivera said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Related: Sister Cindy preaches celibacy at USF<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Smock, who was scheduled to start preaching at noon, arrived at USF over 30 minutes late \u2014 attributing the delay to a lack of parking and her feeling sick.\u00a0<\/p>\n

She then spent a few minutes degrading women\u2019s studies and psychology majors, questioning their purpose and relevance.<\/p>\n

Smock also said students in those fields would end up working at McDonald\u2019s.\u00a0<\/p>\n

And as wild as these statements may seem in a school that offers bachelor\u2019s degrees in both women\u2019s, gender, and sexuality studies<\/a> and psychology<\/a>, Smock\u2019s statements are protected under Florida statutes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Florida public universities must allow people the right to free speech under the First Amendment, according to statute 1004.097<\/a>.<\/p>\n

USF also doubles down on that idea by providing guidelines for the use of public spaces in USF Policy 6-028<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The policy<\/a> states that USF\u2019s purpose and intent is to provide public spaces for people to freely express ideas \u2014 \u201cincluding ideas that some members of the USF community may find objectionable or even offensive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Related: USF faces lawsuit from student group over protest sanctions<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n

Freedom of speech is a crucial part of democracy, but, more importantly, it helps support a public campus where ideas can be exchanged.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But this freedom of speech goes both ways.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While Smock spoke about the \u201cfires of hell\u201d and the perils of drinking and smoking, students responded with laughter and humor \u2014 showing the complexity of how public forums work.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Students have many options when it comes to responding to a figure like Smock, such as cheering her on, attempting to start a debate or talking to other bystanders about the flaws in her preaching.<\/p>\n

But humor is often more effective than shutting a speaker down. It shows that the offensive speech holds little power, as people are no longer personally attacked and instead treat it as comedy.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Smock being allowed to return to USF and speak under her right to free speech shows Florida\u2019s statutes are working.<\/p>\n

The students who continue to show up ready to laugh and undermine her preaching show that free speech is thriving. <\/p>\n

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