An Indiana University lecturer is complaining after she faced scrutiny for claiming the phrase “Make America Great Again” is white supremacy.
Jessica Adams, a social work lecturer at the university, came under fire for displaying a “pyramid of white supremacy” graphic in her class that included MAGA and Columbus Day as examples of “covert white supremacy.”
The graphic also showcased overt examples of white supremacy, including hate crimes and swastikas, insinuating that the MAGA movement belongs in the same category.
The issue came to light when a student complained about the graphic to Sen. Jim Banks (R-IN). This triggered an investigation into the matter. The school removed Adams from the classroom for about six weeks while looking into whether her lecture violated the state’s new intellectual-diversity law.
From IndyStar:
An Indiana University lecturer says she was punished after she gave a lecture that featured a graphic detailing forms of white supremacy that included the phrase "Make America Great Again".
At a small faculty-led rally in front of IU's administration building, Jessica Adams announced that she was found to have violated a recently enacted, contentious Indiana law. Under Senate Enrolled Act 202, professors are required to embrace free expression and intellectual diversity and may not lecture about political views unrelated to their field.
Adams is the second professor known to be sanctioned under the state's intellectual diversity law, both of whom teach on the IU Bloomington campus.
"They did find me to be in violation of SEA 202 despite the fact that I was teaching material well within the scope of my practice and discipline," she said at a Dec. 5 rally. "The profession of social work has a particular mission, vision, goals, values, ethics that we are trying to accomplish, and eliminating racism and white supremacy is one of them."
Adams returned to teaching the class on Nov. 17 with several university-imposed stipulations, including a person sitting in on all her classes through the rest of the year. She also said she must do 10 hours of professional development and consult with a peer on class materials.
The instructor received a common sanction, which IU policy says does not result in immediate punishment. The written warning was added to Adams' permanent personnel file, meaning it will be considered in future reviews.
Jessica Adams, a professor at Indianna University, has been removed from teaching a class called "Diversity, Human Rights and Social Justice" for showing her students a graphic that included the “Make America Great Again” slogan as an example of white supremacy. pic.twitter.com/ErynkAI1rf
— Avery Daye (@AveryDaye) November 14, 2025
Indiana’s intellectual diversity law requires public colleges to promote “free inquiry, free expression, and intellectual diversity.” It ties hiring, promotion, and tenure decisions to whether faculty actively welcome a range of political and ideological views in the classroom.
The law also allows students or employees to submit complaints about faculty members who imposed specific points of view outside of their discipline.
Indiana University has temporarily removed a lecturer, Jessica Adams, from her "Diversity, Human Rights, and Social Justice" class while investigating a student complaint about a graphic she used in a lecture.
— I am Ken (@Ikennect) November 12, 2025
She thinks "Make America Great Again" is a form of "covert white… pic.twitter.com/BD0ziIwqMC
The issue on college campuses has never been that left-wing views are presented to students. The issue is that, in too many cases, these are the only allowable expressions of political thought. Conservative voices are routinely suppressed or reviled to the point that right-leaning students self-censor.
Progressives have been using higher education as a way to influence young minds while stifling competing ideas for decades. But perhaps now, the tide is beginning to turn.