The American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana announced an appeal Monday after the dismissal of its lawsuit against the state's intellectual diversity law for colleges and universities.
Senate Enrolled Act 202 requires college professors to teach “intellectually diverse” ideas and promote free speech in the classroom. The instructors could be reported, demoted or lose tenure if they violate that law.
Three professors from Indiana University and Purdue University sued to stop SEA 202 in the U.S District Court of Southern Indiana with support from the American Civil Liberties Union. The ACLU called the law unconstitutional, but a federal judge dismissed the case last month.
The judge said the three professors filed the lawsuit too early to show how they’ve been harmed by the law. The professors told the court they self-censored, but the universities haven’t taken any disciplinary action against them.
The ACLU is appealing that dismissal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. In a release, the ACLU said the dismissal was based on technical grounds, not the constitutionality of the law.
“We believe this is a clear violation of the free speech protections of the First Amendment and the guarantee of due process in the Fourteenth Amendment, and we will continue to fight to protect academic freedom in Indiana,” the ACLU said.
