37 people took cupcakes out of 72 available.

Throughout this awareness challenge, I experienced a wide variety of reactions, both positive and negative from students.  Some individuals were appalled, dropping the agreement sheet as if it were on fire, some politely said "Oh, I can't do that," and others did not look at the sheet, signed, and allowed their photo to be taken simply because they wanted a cupcake.  Others gave reasons why they should take a cupcake. Just because a person gave up a cupcake in exchange for their rights for the day did not mean they were unaware of what they were doing, as one thought provoking comment proved from Jessica Igarashi.  She stated, "There are some people that don't have the 5 rights that we do or feel that it isn't equal among us, and I thought it would help me see their perspective if I also weren't able to exercise those rights."  I found this response to be one I hadn't even considered receiving, well thought out with logical reasoning.

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I received extremely positive feedback from faculty, staff and students about the challenge itself.  I had many people approach, figure out what I was doing, and then tell me that this was an engaging, provocative way to get people talking about the First Amendment.  I also found evidence that this truly did generate community conversation; an individual came to me and said he'd heard talk in a group of how "messed up" it would be if people actually were willing to give up their 1A rights.   I also encountered many inquisitive questions and commentary from fellow students as well as professors after I'd done the challenge.

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The bottom line of this "challenge" is not to embarrass people because they accepted it.  It is to raise awareness that the importance of First Amendment education is vital to society, and as citizens of America, we need to encourage others to engage in this education. 40% of Americans who participated in the 2018 State of the First Amendment Survey were not able to name even one right guaranteed by the First Amendment. This challenge was one unique way to inspire people to pay attention to what these rights truly mean, and show that America does not pay enough attention to how these rights affect each and every one of us on a daily basis. This is one small example proving that even this small challenge on Buena Vista University's campus can raise awareness about the essential First Amendment rights. To me, that's definitely a positive step in the right direction.