Indiana University changes rule about overnight protests on campus

Indianapolis Star

18 hours ago

The Indiana University board of trustees voted to change a policy intended to tighten restrictions on campus protests after a federal judge found it was likely to violate the First Amendment.
Nearly a year ago, IU's board passed its "expressive activity" policy to ban overnight camping and the use of unapproved structures in response to a pro-Palestinian solidarity encampment that stood on campus for months during the spring 2024 semester.
Violators faced a range of possible disciplinary actions, including suspension, expulsion, loss of university employment and a responsibility to pay for damages.
However, the policy was paused after a judge ruled two weeks ago that it likely violates the campus community's First Amendment rights. Time, place and manner restrictions on free expression are legal as long as they are narrowly tailored; the judge's order said IU's policy was not.
During its June 12 meeting, the board unanimously agreed to end the prohibition on overnight protesting and other expressive activities. It also added language saying the policy should be "interpreted in favor of free speech rights."
While the overnight restriction is removed, protests stretching after hours, like the pro-Palestinian encampment, may still prove difficult. Camping is not permitted, and protesters must still obtain prior approval for structures.
The trustees voted to amend the policy at their June 12 meeting without explicitly detailing the changes before the vote. The policy was updated online about 15 minutes after the vote.
General Counsel Anthony Prather said he and other administrators were evaluating changes to the policy prior to the court's decision. The new version is a combination of stakeholder feedback and takeaways from the preliminary injunction, he said.
Newly sworn-in trustee James Bopp Jr., a longtime conservative First Amendment lawyer, said he agreed that the previous policy overstepped constitutional rights. The new version, he said, adequately weighs guardrails and rights to on-campus speech.
"This issue, not only in my general practice but for the purposes of the university, is of critical importance that we get this right," Bopp said. "I really want to compliment the general counsel, in my opinion, as having done that now."
Trustees were also set to discuss resident undergraduate tuition, the budget and President Pamela Whitten's compensation during the June 12 meeting.
Last year, trustees crafted an update to IU's "expressive activities" policy after a Dunn Meadow encampment resulted in several clashes with police and dozens of arrests. The university fenced off the area last school year to make pricey repairs it said the encampment caused.
Three of the nine trustees voted against it during its initial passage last summer. Indiana Gov. Mike Braun has since removed three of the board's members, including two of the dissenting trustees, under his new appointment powers, codified last legislative session.
The campus community widely decried the policy as unconstitutional, and protesters staged midnight candlelight vigils throughout the fall 2024 semester to test and challenge IU's enforcement of the policy.
The Indiana Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit challenging the policy on First Amendment grounds last August, which resulted in the policy's temporary halt this May.
The USA TODAY Network - Indiana's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners.