Courtsey of Alice Magazine
University officials notified editors of Nineteen Fifty-Six Magazine and Alice Magazine that their publications would cease operations. Officials pointed to their interpretation of a July memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi that offers non-binding recommendations on anti-DEI policy compliance.
The move has sparked debate over the intersection of anti-DEI policies and First Amendment protections for student media. While both magazines were geared toward specific demographics, they were open to all students for participation.
"I was under the impression that we were protected from being affected by any anti-DEI legislation and rulings because of our First Amendment right to freedom of press, but it appears I was wrong," said Gabrielle Gunter, editor-in-chief of Alice Magazine, in a statement Tuesday.
Alex House, an associate director of communications at UA, said the suspension ensures "all members of our community feel welcome to participate in programs that receive university funding from the Office of Student Media."
Nineteen Fifty-Six Magazine founder Tionna Taite criticized the decision as a retreat from commitments the university made in 2020 to advance diversity and inclusion. "Truly both 1956 Magazine and Alice are pivotal to the minority experience at UA," Taite said Tuesday.
Editor-in-Chief Kendal Wright emphasized the publication's continuing relevance. "Regardless of our suspension, there will continue to be a need on campus for the stories of the university's Black community to be told," she wrote on Instagram Tuesday evening.
The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression is investigating the suspension. Marie McMullan, leader of FIRE's Student Press Freedom Initiative, called it "deeply concerning" and "a blow to the student press in Tuscaloosa."
Alice Magazine, founded in 2015, covers lifestyle, health and wellness topics for women students. Nineteen Fifty-Six, named for the year the university integrated, reports on Black culture and lifestyle at UA.
The suspension follows a pattern of closures at the university. After Alabama passed SB 129 in March 2024, banning publicly funded DEI programs and certain classroom discussions, the university shuttered the Black Student Union office and Safe Zone, a space for LGBTQ+ students.
In a federal lawsuit challenging SB 129, UA attorneys argued this summer that reopening those spaces would constitute "unlawful discrimination," citing the Bondi memo. Attorneys for students and educators challenging the law disputed this interpretation, noting the memo is non-binding and the spaces were open to all students.
A petition on MoveOn calling for reinstatement of the magazines had gathered more than 1,700 signatures by Tuesday evening. University officials said they plan to launch a new magazine for the next academic year.
The news was first reported by the Crimson White, the university's student newspaper.
