IU Board of Trustees approves updates to the Expressive Activity policy

The IU Board of Trustees voted 4-2 to approve changes to the Expressive Activity policy at their scheduled meeting on Nov. 15 at the IU Fort Wayne campus.

Vice President and General Counsel Anthony Prather presented the changes.

The proposed amendment to the policy included the addition of a new section titled, “Limited Content Neutral Overnight Restrictions,” which states that “Indiana University members may spontaneously and contemporaneously assemble and distribute literature,” between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. with the emphasis by Prather on “content neutral.”

Prather also reiterated that the following activities are “prohibited on university property” during the above hours:

Protesting
Making speeches
Circulating petitions
All other unapproved conduct and activities prohibited by the policy or law

The third part of the revision was to “identify activities that are prohibited” during these hours “unless those activities are a part of a scheduled or authorized university activity extending into that time period or prior written approval has been obtained through the appropriate university office.”

This revision comes after criticism from pro-Palestine protestors along with students, faculty, staff and community members concerned about free speech on campus. These groups have since started holding candlelight vigils on the Bloomington campus at 11 p.m. every Sunday.

Staff and community members have also submitted feedback about the restrictions outlined in the policy, according to Prather.

“After your approval of UA-10 this past summer, my office began receiving feedback and comments, complaints about the policy,” Prather said in his address to the board. “We received feedback both in writing and as a result of us meeting in person with members of the university community, including faculty members and others.”

Prather said that a majority of the feedback included questions about what actions were and weren’t allowed during the restricted periods.

“These changes are meant to address those questions and increase clarity so those who wish to exercise their rights know what’s permitted and what’s not,” Prather said.

The ACLU of Indiana also filed a lawsuit in August. According to the ACLU, “The lawsuit alleges that the policy, which prohibits ‘expressive activity’ between the hours of 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. and threatens harsh punishments, including suspension or expulsion for students, and suspension or termination of staff, is overly broad and violates the First Amendment.”

The Expressive Activity policy, which was first approved in July was said to support, “protests and demonstrations that don’t materially and substantially disrupt university operations or hinder the expressive activity of another individual or group,” following events at the protests in IU Bloomington’s Dunn Meadow, according to News at IU.

Pro-Palestine encampments on the Indianapolis and Bloomington campuses were forced to be dismantled after the policy went into effect on August 1. The Indianapolis encampment was dismantled voluntarily after the policy went into effect.

According to the Indiana Daily Student, the encampment on the Bloomington campus was also taken down voluntarily after, “injuries sustained by protestors during the initial rounds of arrests and a decrease in momentum of the national encampment movement.”

Chair of the Student Relations Committee Kyle S. Seibert and Chair of the External Relations Committee Vivian Winston voted no to the amendment. Seibert said he was “on board with the policy 90% of the time and the extra 10% of the time I struggle with the time restriction, and so for that reason I’ll be voting no.”

Winston also voted no due to the time restrictions. “I’m also opposed and for the same reason,” Winston said. “I feel like the time restriction in it has made it too difficult to fairly enforce.”

Both Seibert and Winston voted no to the initial Expressive Activity policy at the meeting in July.

Hanne Brandgard (she/her) is a senior majoring in journalism and minoring in film studies. She is the Editor-in-Chief of The Campus Citizen. In her free time, she enjoys watching movies, baking, and meticulously curating playlists.

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