Speech First, a nationwide free speech organization, filed a federal lawsuit May 29 in the U.S. District Court of Southern District of Indiana against IU President Pamela Whitten, IU Board of Trustees and many IU administrators challenging the university’s “bias incident” reporting system.
The lawsuit alleges the university is violating students’ First and 14th Amendments. In a press release, Speech First wrote the bias incident policy is designed to “deter, discourage and otherwise prevent students from expressing disfavored views.”
Speech First claims IU uses an unclear definition of a “bias incident” and the policy is broad enough that students can report anything offensive, even if it's a countering opinion according to the release.
IU defines a bias incident as "any conduct, speech, or expression, motivated in whole or in part by bias or prejudice meant to intimidate, demean, mock, degrade, marginalize, or threaten individuals or groups based on that individual or group's actual or perceived identities.”
Students can report a bias incident they experienced or witnessed by filling out the report form and trained university officials typically respond back after one to two business days.
IU Executive Director for Media Relations Mark Bode said IU does not comment on pending litigation.
“The University is well aware their Bias Incident Policy will inevitably lead to student self-censorship and the elimination of dissenting ideas,” Speech First Executive Director Cherise Trump said in the release. “This is not only an unconstitutional abuse of government power, but it goes against the core principles America was founded on.”
The press release states that students should have a right to express their opinion without fear of retaliation and students shouldn’t face displinary actions against their opinion.
“Indiana University has a history of hostility towards views that dissent from the dominant ideology that rules their administration and faculty,” Trump said in the release. “From sabotaging student events, to undermining student attempts to provide alternative views to their peers, IU has operated unchecked for too long.”
The release states that taxpayers should be furious that their money is funding a “tyrannical” administration.
Speech First has also challenged bias incident policies at the University of Texas, University of Michigan and University of Central Florida. Each of these cases was won and settled.
In the last year, IU has had other controversies related to free speech on campus, including Palestinian abstract artist, Samia Halaby art show's cancellation, Miko Peled and Mosab Hassan Yousef's event cancellations and the protest taking place in Dunn Meadow.
