IU students and staff share concerns with new proposed Expressive Activity policy

BLOOMINGTON — A coalition of Indiana University students and staff are sharing their response to an independent review of the Pro-Palestine protests that led to the arrests of 57 people in April.

Some students believe the new policy being considered by IU infringes their right to speak freely.

Students gathered in Dunn Meadow where the encampment still sits for a press conference Friday to address their concerns with an Expressive Activity policy.

The IU Board of Trustees are considering implementing the policy which would give more restrictions for those wanting to hold demonstrations on IU campuses.

“They can hold signs, they can put chalk on the sidewalk, they can chant and yell and scream, all of this is protected First Amendment activity, but the policy would restrict the boundaries of how those activities can occur on university grounds,” said Bryce Greene with the IU Divestment Coalition.

Students against the policy said the university is restricting their right to free speech.

This new regulation is one of the recommendations from the law firm, Cooley LLP.

The review of the protests released on Thursday called for the change ahead of the Fall 2024 semester.

“If you told me two years ago that this is what campus will be like right now, I don’t think I would have believed you,” said Associate Professor at IU, Heather Akou. “It’s just a level of violence I never imagined.”

Both Greene and Akou were arrested during the April protests.

If approved, the university would be able to regulate signs and prohibit overnight camping for demonstrations in the future.

“The original policy said force should not be used against protesters, the new draft expressive policy does not,” said Akou. “So is the administration planning to bring any of the state police again to violently arrest or even shoot students? This is a real concern of mine.”

The coalition believes the policy would be used to silence protests the administration doesn’t agree with, but they say they will not give up easily.

“The vote will only determine how we fight and what we’re fighting about, but we have our eyes on the goal,” said Greene. “The goal is to ensure that IU and the IU community is not complicit in genocide.”

This policy will be up for a vote on July 29. If passed, it would be implemented on Aug. 1.

When asked for a comment, the university referred back to the release given on Thursday about the report.

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