Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania: Greek Organizations Subject to Guilt by Association and Ban on Affiliating with Derecognized Groups

On January 28, 2021, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania informed members of its Fraternity and Sorority Life (FSL) community that “any future significant violation of Greek specific rules or Code of Conduct violations will result in the cancelation of the entire [Fraternity and Sorority Life] community at Bloomsburg” and banned them “from affiliating with derecognized groups.” On March 23, FIRE wrote to the university explaining that, as a public university bound by the First Amendment, it may not impose guilt by association on its students or restrict their associational right to affiliate with social organizations unrecognized by the university. Bloomsburg followed through on its threat to cancel Greek life on May 17. On June 1, FIRE wrote to Bloomsburg again, calling for the university to rescind its punishment of student organizations. Bloomsburg failed to respond to FIRE's letters.