Lawsuit: University of Illinois Chills Free Expression with ‘Speech Police’

Free Speech College
AFP PHOTO/Josh Edelson

A new lawsuit filed against the University of Illinois alleges that administrators have installed a campus “Speech Police” system.

According to a report by The College Fix, a new lawsuit against the University of Illinois’ alleges that the institution’s “bias incident” report system allows administrators to unlawfully police speech on campus.

“Bias incident” report systems have been instituted on many college campus around the country. They are structured in such a manner that allows students to report incidents quietly and confidentially. However, these systems have been abused by students since their implementation as a means to report their peers for mundane speech.

The report included several examples of reports made by students at the University of Illinois. One student complained that a guest lecturer had made pro-America comments.

· An anonymous person reported that a speaker brought to campus by a student group was offensive to non-US citizens by saying things like, “America is the greatest country in the world” and “Pull yourself up by your bootstraps.”

· A student who identifies as transgender reported that a building service worker in a dining hall said that trans people shouldn’t be in the military and called trans women “male.” This incident was forwarded to Housing Human Resources and the Office for Diversity Equity and Access.

· A student reported that an instructor had said, “If students did not cheat on the English proficiency exam they could avoid feelings of isolation.” This comment was made following a presentation the instructor had given about the isolation that international students can face on campus.

Earlier this month, Breitbart News reported that a professor at the University of Utah received a “bias incident” complaint over his decision to include male authors in the curriculum for his course.

Stay tuned to Breitbart News for more updates on this story.

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