INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Republican Indiana lawmakers voted Wednesday to ban Indiana University from using state money to support sexual research institutes after right-wing legislators dropped allegations of child exploitation by founder and mid-20th-century researcher Alfred Kinsey.
The Indiana House voted 53-34 to block state funding to the Kinsey Institute, which has long faced criticism from conservatives because of its ongoing research and the legacy of Kinsey’s work, which has been blamed for contributing to liberal sexual morality, including more acceptance of homosexuality and pornography.
Alfred Kinsey, who died in 1956, produced studies on sexual behavior in 1948 and 1953 and was portrayed by Liam Neeson in the 2004 film “Kinsey.”
Republican Rep. Lorissa Sweet said that some of Kinsey’s research is the exploitation of children as she supports an amendment to the state budget bill against funding for the institute.
“By limiting funding to the Kinsey Institute through Indiana University tax dollars, we can be sure that we are not funding research done by crime.” Sweet said.
Democratic Rep. Matt Pierce, whose Bloomington district includes the university’s campus, responded that Sweet’s claim was “based on an old unproven conspiracy charge that doesn’t exist,” which he called “a hot internet meme that keeps coming back.”
Pierce said the university maintains a department that ensures all research involving humans meets federal law and the Kinsey Institute aims to better understand human sexuality, including how to treat and prevent sexual predators and pedophiles.
A spokeswoman for Indiana University and the director of the institute did not immediately comment on the election.
Seven Republican members of the House of Representatives joined all Democrats in voting against Manis’ proposal, which specifically prohibits the use of state money for expenses including on-campus facilities, research work, utilities, office supplies and the maintenance of research photos or films.
Pierce said the agency’s funding is being exploited as a “culture war” issue and will only create accounting problems for universities using sources such as outside grant funds or tuition fees to support them.
The fate of Kinsey’s funding ban may not be decided until the final version of the state budget is voted on by lawmakers in late April.