The state of Maryland experienced a $1.4 billion budget shortfall in 2012.

Maryland taxpayers will then be shocked to learn that the state’s flagship educational institution, The University of Maryland, squandered  $15,000 to fight “non-inclusive language” on campus.

The University of Maryland (UMD) allocated $15,000 in 2012 to combat the use of language deemed by administrators to be “insensitive.”

The “words have power” campaign’s goal is to deploy posters, buttons and other promotional materials to help foster an environment on campus that is not offensive to illegal aliens, homosexuals, or other minority groups.

“Non-inclusive language can offend or make spaces uncomfortable for people who are excluded by that language,” one of the campaign posters reads.

“It is easy to accidentally use offensive language, but since you could just as easily be on the receiving end of such language, you should try to ensure that you are not offending others with the words and phrases you use,” it adds.

One sign tells students to avoid using the phrase “that’s so ghetto” and substitute the term with words like “grimey,” “wack,” or “messed up.”

Maryland taxpayers will be further perplexed when they discover the money went for items such as this video featuring a lecture from an “inclusion scholar”.

Inclusive Language Campaign – David

Additionally, in the wake of nationwide repression of First Amendment free speech rights on campuses, some of the university’s attendees are expressing their concerns about this program.

But, some students say the inclusive language campaign goes too far.

“It is important to be civil with one another but this goes too far in taking language that most people would not find offensive and making us feel guilty for using it,” Ross Marchand, who is the president of Students for Liberty, a libertarian student group at UMD, told Campus Reform.

Marchand said he worries that such rules will hamper student’s constitutional right to free speech on campus.

“An environment conducive to freedom of speech [on campus]…requires the ability to say things without guilt,” said Marchand.

CLICK HERE to visit the “inclusive language” campaign’s website and view additional videos and posters produced by the university.