University settles with professor in free speech case over pronoun use

by Heather Hamilton, Social Media Reporter 

Shawnee State University, located in Portsmouth, Ohio, has agreed to settle for $400,000 in a lawsuit brought by Nicholas Meriwether, a philosophy professor, who argued it was in his First Amendment rights to refuse using preferred pronouns of a male student who identifies as female.

A Shawnee State University professor has settled for $400,000 in a lawsuit against his employer, arguing it was within his First Amendment rights to refuse using the preferred pronouns of a student who identifies as female.

Nicholas Meriwether, a Shawnee philosophy professor, was issued a written rebuke after a 2018 Title IX investigation into the situation, prompting the lawsuit, which was originally dismissed in February 2020, when a lower district court found there were no “broader societal concerns,” but revived by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Shawnee State University, located in Portsmouth, Ohio, agreed to settle the case Thursday. Alliance Defending Freedom, which represented Meriwether, released a statement saying the university “agreed to pay $400,000 in damages and Meriwether’s attorneys’ fees. Additionally, considering the 6th Circuit’s ruling, the university is rescinding the written warning it issued Meriwether.”

Shawnee State University issued a statement saying its decision to settle was made for economic reasons.

"Though we have decided to settle, we adamantly deny that anyone at Shawnee State deprived Dr. Meriwether of his free speech rights or his rights to freely exercise his religion," the statement said. "Over the course of this lawsuit, it became clear that the case was being used to advance divisive social and political agendas at a cost to the university and its students. That cost is better spent on fulfilling Shawnee State’s mission of service to our students, families and community."

ADF praised the outcome, noting that “the university has agreed that Meriwether has the right to choose when to use, or avoid using, titles or pronouns when referring to or addressing students. Significantly, the university agreed Meriwether will never be mandated to use pronouns, including if a student requests pronouns that conflict with his or her biological sex."

In the case, Meriwether argued he was standing by his Christian beliefs in refusing to use the preferred pronouns of the student and that he instead offered to call his students by either “Mr.” or “Ms.” and their last name, or simply by their last name.

“Dr. Meriwether went out of his way to accommodate his students and treat them all with dignity and respect, yet his university punished him because he wouldn’t endorse an ideology that he believes is false,” ADF Senior Counsel Travis Barham said. “We’re pleased to see the university recognize that the First Amendment guarantees Dr. Meriwether — and every other American — the right to speak and act in a manner consistent with one’s faith and convictions.