Students will ‘self-censor’ after Supreme Court dismissed bias response team case: watchdog

The ramifications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision not to take on the contentious issue of campus bias response teams will include students continuing to “self-censor,” a free speech watchdog said.

An estimated 450 bias response teams continue to operate on college campuses nationwide, serving as a mechanism for students to report each other and professors to administrators for conduct they find offensive.

Zach Greenberg, senior programs officer with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, said without a decision on the issue from the Supreme Court, precedent lies with regional courts and student free speech will suffer.

“Students will self-censor if they know that their speech can be reported to administrators by their fellow students, by the professors, by anyone on campus,” Greenberg said in a phone interview with The College Fix.