GUEST COLUMN: The problem with free expression at IU

Editor's note: All opinions, columns and letters reflect the views of the individual writer and not necessarily those of the IDS or its staffers. I am a scholar and activist who focuses on campus free speech. In preparation for my Sept. 9 Heterodox Academy discussion at Indiana University about institutional neutrality and academic freedom, I took a close look at IU's recent record — and I was shocked at what I found. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression ranked IU as the worst public university in America — 255th out of 257 overall — in its 2026 rankings and warned 'Indiana University has a crisis on its hands.' It's easy to see why. I've never seen a university with so many terrible policies and a breathtaking record of censorship. The vast number of repressive incidents at IU is too numerous to fully document here, but a few must be mentioned: Canceling an exhibit by abstract artist Samia Halaby because of her personal criticism of Israel (2023), suspending professor Abdulkader Sinno for reserving a room for a speaker that the administration illegally wanted to ban (2023), adopting an unconstitutional Expressive Activity Policy that banned all expression on campus between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. (2024), terminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs and erasing DEI language from university websites and teaching materials (2025), firing Nianli Ma and Xiaofeng Wang without due process (2025), sanctioning professor Ben Robinson for criticizing Israel and the campus administration (2025), firing Student Media Director Jim Rodenbush and censoring the Indiana Daily Student (2025) and suspending then firing social work professor Jessica Adams for showing a graphic about white supremacy in class (2026). The 'Expressive Activity' ban was overturned by a federal court this year for creating a 'virtual 'First Amendment Free Zone.'' In an encouraging sign, IU adopted the Chicago Principles earlier this year. But real change is needed to prove that this reflects a genuine commitment to improving free expression rather than just a public relations move. Last week Vice Chancellor Lamar Hylton wrote an IDS guest column full of supportive words about free speech and urging students to 'use freespeech.iu.edu as your roadmap.' But that site offers a terrible roadmap to free expression, announcing: 'Expressive activity must not take place in areas that are used for instructional, administrative, or residential purposes…' Instead, IU needs to declare that expressive activity should be encouraged everywhere on campus, with rare limits only when absolutely necessary to protect the rights of others. The FAQ even claims that opinions on 'political or social issues' are not allowed on social media accounts of IU 'student organizations' and urges everyone at IU to use 'disclaimers' even on their private accounts. The guide says that personal support or criticism of a political candidate is only allowed if someone at IU 'clearly indicates that the statement represents their personal opinion.' None of these limits are constitutional. The FAQ also states that 'a speaker or visitor…may be excluded from campus if there is physical violence or specific threat of physical violence or destruction of property.' This seems like an official invitation to threaten violence if you want to get a speaker banned — which is what happened to a Hillel speaker in 2024 whose event was canceled. Saving free speech at IU requires a radical shift in policies, practices and values. IU needs to fix bad policies that limit protests, ban 'bullying' and censor based on vague terms like 'verbal abuse.' Its Institutional Neutrality policy absurdly declares that 'University Community Members' — which includes students and alumni — 'should assume that they are representing the University' whenever they use a university email address. IU should adopt the IU Media School Task Force Report's recommendations to protect editorial independence of the IDS and create additional task forces to address artistic freedom, the right to protest, campus speech codes, technology use, social media and institutional neutrality. IU should reverse the flawed decisions to punish faculty, students and staff for their free speech, and adopt strong protections for due process and shared governance to avoid repeating the errors of the past. IU should also create a faculty-run free speech center that can encourage programs, departments and student groups to debate and discuss important issues, and lead efforts to analyze free speech at IU. IU once held a legendary status defending academic freedom. In 1953, President Herman B Wells fiercely protected the Kinsey Institute and academic freedom on campus, proclaiming that 'we have large faith in the values of knowledge, little faith in ignorance." Today, faith in ignorance is overwhelming IU, from the leaders of the university to the legislators dictating censorship. Indiana Republicans banned all state funding for Kinsey in 2023, and a campus movement stopped the administration from abandoning the institute. Rapid change is possible. In 2023, IU's football team sat at the bottom of the Big Ten, and two years later, it became national champions. Reversing IU's free speech decline is much easier. IU can become a national leader in free expression — it simply requires the desire to make it happen, the commitment to admit past mistakes,reform flawed policies or practices and a willingness to build a culture of academic freedom. John K. Wilson writes the Debatable Ideas column for Inside Higher Ed and is the author of eight books, including 'The Myth of Political Correctness,' 'Patriotic Correctness: Academic Freedom and Its Enemies' and his next book, 'The Attack on Academia.'