BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WISH) — Indiana University faculty and staff on Monday said they fear Indiana’s new intellectual diversity law could be used to target faculty of color.

This fall marks the first semester under the provisions of Senate Enrolled Act 202, the exact language of which requires university professors to foster intellectual diversity in class and sets up a system for students to file complaints about professors who fail to do so. Tenured faculty now have to submit their course plans for review every five years to ensure compliance. Universities also must adopt neutrality policies. State lawmakers approved the measure during this spring’s legislative session.

Many university faculty and staff maintain the law is merely a front to censor teachings about historically-marginalized populations such as people of color or LGBTQ+ people. On Monday, a group of faculty and staff announced they are launching the Protect IU From 202 campaign. Faculty demands include a promise from IU leadership not to include complaints about teaching and research on diversity, equity and inclusion topics as part of SEA 202 complaint investigations and to provide full due process protections for faculty, including a right to know the complaintant’s identity and to receive a complete copy of the complaint. Russ Skiba, professor emeritus and the head of the University Alliance for Racial Justice, said IU’s current complaint system allows people from out of state with no connection to IU to submit SEA 202 complaints. He said IU’s current reporting software, EthicsPoint, is meant for fraud, abuse and illegal activity, not disagreements over academic teachings.

“A troll in Texas could file a frivolous, even discriminatory complaint against faculty of color at Indiana University,” he said.

IU faculty members said some of their colleagues already are asking for guidance about potential self-censorship in response to SEA 202. Amrita Chakrabarti Myers, who teaches courses specifically on the historic experiences and struggles of Black women in America, said she feels like she already has a target on her back.

“History is about the why and the how of things, not just a recitation of the what,” she said. “I am deeply concerned about how SEA 202 will affect my ability to teach about African-American history, Black women’s history, slavery, and U.S. history more broadly, to the fullest.”

IU administrators did not directly respond to the faculty members’ demands. Instead, they pointed to previous guidance which states the law does not expressly require that a faculty member teach cultural and intellectual diversity, nor does the law’s language allow it to be used to prevent faculty from teaching, researching or writing about DEI-related topics. They said the university will maintain its commitment to hiring diverse faculty and staff by considering, among other things, expertise in certain scholarly areas and demonstrated ability to contribute positively to a multicultural campus.

A federal judge earlier this month rejected a lawsuit against the law because it was filed before universities had had a chance to draft their policies in response to SEA 202. The judge noted in her ruling the decision was based solely on timing and had nothing to do with the merits of any complaints.