It’s no smoke: IU Southeast students protest smoking ban

A small group of students at Indiana University Southeast protested the university’s tobacco-free policy by lighting cigarettes and smoking on campus Thursday afternoon.
Three students received referrals after campus police asked them to put out their cigarettes and they refused, but the protest remained peaceful. Another half dozen students joined in the protest or carried signs but chose not to smoke.
Ian Girdley, a sophomore English and journalism major, organized what he called the “act of civil disobedience.”
“We ask the IU Board of Trustees to give us a reasonable place to smoke while still protecting students from unwanted secondhand smoke,” Girdley said.The students walked from the free speech area near the clock tower about 50 yards to a nearby field to smoke. The campus policy is that students can only smoke in vehicles.
“I think most of us would just like a designated area to smoke — maybe one on each end of campus,” said Katelyn Dowell, a junior majoring in psychology.
Tristan Williamson, a junior English major, does not smoke, but marched with the demonstrators. He said it is “ridiculous” that smokers do not have a place to go.
Former IUS music professor Jamey Abersold argued with the protesters, accusing them of distorting the truth about the harmfulness of tobacco. Abersold now does anti-smoking presentations at local schools.
“I don’t think people should be allowed to smoke anywhere,” Abersold said.
University spokeswoman Jenny Johnson Wolf said the students who chose to smoke will be referred to the vice chancellor for Student Affairs, which is university policy for anyone caught smoking.
There is a judicial hearing to determine any discipline. Wolf said there is no minimum or maximum penalty for violating the smoking ban and that each offender is treated on a “case- by-case” basis.
In two years of the restrictions, less than 20 students have received referrals for smoking, Wolf said. Many of the students at the protest say they smoke in the parking lot, and no one has ever told them to stop. Girdley said he has received verbal reprimands for smoking on campus, but was never issued a referral before Thursday.
He said one reason they chose to demonstrate now — two years after the Indiana University Board of Trustees mandated the campus become completely tobacco-free — is because of concern the university was planning to start stricter enforcement of the anti-smoking policy.
Wolf said the university is discussing how to better enforce the rules, but that no formal proposal has been made and no date is set for changes to take place.
“The campus, with feedback from our Executive Council and students, is reviewing options to improve the effectiveness of the tobacco-free compliance, Wolf said. “This includes the possibility of fines and/or community service being assigned to those who break the tobacco-free policy.”
Student Government Association President James Bonsall said he will meet today with administration officials to discuss how to better enforce the tobacco-free policy. He said the university is considering issuing citations that would be similar to parking tickets, rather than having students go before a judicial board.
“Basically, nobody has ever had to enforce the smoking ban so far,” Bonsall said.
He said the problem with the current system is that some students do not have vehicles on campus and therefore cannot smoke. He supports having designated smoking areas away from building.
“I don’t believe nonsmoking students should be subjected at all to smoke,” Bonsall said.
He said it was good to see students out protesting, although he disagrees with them violating university rules to do so.