Academic Freedom Archives

Academic Freedom

Philosophy Professor Fired After Posting Song on YouTube

James Spiegel, a professor of philosophy at Taylor University, a Christian liberal arts college in Indiana, was fired from his position after posting a video to YouTube of him performing one of his songs, “Little Hitler,” sharing it on Facebook, and refusing to take it down when asked to do so by the college administration. (more…)

Illusion and Agreement in the Debate over Intolerance

A good number of very smart, interesting, and creative people signed onto an open letter, published in Harper’s this week, applauding “wider calls for greater equality and inclusion across our society” while lamenting “the intolerant climate that has set in on all sides.” (more…)

A Resignation at Philosophical Studies and a Reply from the Editors (updated w/ comments from Cohen, Dembroff, Byrne)

Last week, Stewart Cohen, professor of philosophy at the University of Arizona, resigned as editor-in-chief from the prestigious academic philosophy journal, Philosophical Studies, a position he held for 25 years. (more…)

Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory in Belgrade Under Government Attack

The Serbian government is attempting to “muzzle and perhaps even eliminate” the Institute for Philosophy and Social Theory at the University of Belgrade, according to faculty there.

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Free Speech at Oxford (updated with an important correction)

Flying around social media yesterday were cheers that Oxford University had issued a “Statement on the Importance of Free Speech” in response to a motion from the Oxford Student Union allegedly to “ban ‘ableist, classist and misogynist’ reading lists”. (more…)

Academic Freedom and Expertise at Federal Institutions of Higher Education (and Elsewhere)

The Hatch Act is a law that forbids employees of the executive branch of the United States federal government from taking part in certain forms of political activity, usually in regards to supporting particular candidates or political parties in elections, while acting in their official capacity. What does this mean for academic experts on political matters who are ..

Scholars Object to Publication of Paper Defending Race Science

Scholars are objecting to the decision of the editors of the journal, Philosophical Psychology, to publish an article that calls for “free inquiry” into possible inherited genetic bases of group differences on IQ tests. (more…)

Philosophers and the AAUP

The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) recently published a statement, “In Defense of Knowledge and Higher Education,” prompted by remarks from US Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos that disparaged professors for indoctrinating and intimidating students. (more…)

UGA Philosophy Grad Student Cleared of Misconduct Charges

The University of Georgia (UGA) has determined that Irami Osei-Frimpong, a philosophy graduate student and teaching assistant at the school, did not violate the school’s code of conduct.

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DePaul Students Ask University to Censure Philosophy Professor for Writings on Palestinians

Jason D. Hill, professor of philosophy at DePaul University, recently wrote an article for The Federalist about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that has prompted students at his university to launch a petition calling for his censure. (more…)

UGA “Vigorously Exploring All Available Legal Options” It Can Take Against Philosophy Grad Student

A University of Georgia (UGA) alumnus’s expression of bafflement at his alma mater’s failure to condemn remarks made by a philosophy graduate student at the school and his call for other alumni to withhold donations has apparently prompted the university to consider action against the graduate student. (more…)

The “Moral Panic” of Campus Free Speech

People get awfully solemn in the United States about the civic function of our institutions of higher education. They talk about college as the nursery of democracy and the care that we must take with our young people. As educators, the future is in our hands. I believe it is worth puncturing this solemnity with some awkward questions. (more…)

Professors Favor Free Speech

93 percent of faculty agree with the statement that, “niversity life requires that people with diverse viewpoints and perspectives encounter each other in an environment where they feel free to speak up and challenge each other.” There is almost universal support for the exchange of ideas and open discourse. (more…)

Universities as a Bulwark Against (and Target of) Fascism

“Fascist politics seeks to undermine the credibility of institutions that harbor independent voices of dissent,” says Jason Stanley (Yale), and chief among such institutions are universities, which for the past 50 years have been “the epicenter of protest against injustice and authoritarian overreach.” (more…)

Oxford Students Launch Petition to Have John Finnis “Removed” (Updated)

Over 350 people have added their names to a petition calling for John Finnis, emeritus professor of law and philosophy at the University of Oxford, to be removed from his position teaching compulsory seminars in the law curricula at the university. (more…)

“Credible Threats Of Personal Violence” Lead To Retraction of Colonialism Paper (updated)

The controversy over the decision of Third World Quarterly to publish “The Case for Colonialism” by Bruce Gilley (discussed here) has escalated. Now, “credible threats of personal violence” against the editor of the journal, Shahid Qadir, have led the journal’s publisher, Taylor & Francis, to withdraw the article. (more…)

Is Academic Freedom in Israel Threatened by a Philosopher-Authored Ethics Code? (Updated with English Translation of Proposed Code)

Israel’s Minister of Education has proposed the adoption of a code of ethics for academics that some worry poses a threat to the academic freedom of professors there. The code was authored by Asa Kasher, the Laura Schwarz-Kipp Chair in Professional Ethics and Philosophy of Practice at Tel Aviv University. (more…)

Untangling the Strings: The Limits of Acceptable Donor Influence in Academia (guest post by Chris Surprenant)

“Our donors are supporting our projects, not the other way around.”

The following is a guest post * by Chris Surprenant, associate professor of philosophy at the University of New Orleans, on the role that those who fund academic programs may have in determining program goals, methods, materials, and staff. (more…)

Where the Open Exchange of Ideas is Most Protected and Valued

” commonly held, and wrong, belief is that colleges and universities suppress speech as a matter of course. In fact, the higher education sector is where the open exchange of ideas is more protected and valued than most other sectors in society.” (more…)

Philosophy Professor Suspended for Anti-Gay Facebook Post (updated)

Jean Laberge, a professor of philosophy at Cégep du Vieux-Montréal since 1994, was suspended from his position at the end of January, reportedly for writing about his “disgust for homosexuals” on Facebook. (more…)

Philosopher Involved in Hoax Investigated by University

An institutional review board (IRB) at Portland State University has found that Peter Boghossian, an assistant professor of philosophy at the school, ought to have obtained IRB approval before conducting a project of submitting hoax articles to academic journals. (more…)

Philosophy PhD Student Fired for Tweet Critical of Seminary President

A PhD student in the philosophy program at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary was fired from a $40,000/year food service job and had his $7,000/year tuition benefits taken from him after he endorsed, on Twitter, an article critical of the Seminary’s president. (more…)

NJIT and Rutgers Newark Faculty Demand Alt-Right Colleague Be Fired

Members of the faculty and staff of the Federated History Department at New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) and Rutgers University, Newark have called for Jason Jorjani, a humanities lecturer at NJIT with a PhD in philosophy from SUNY Stony Brook, to be fired. (more…)

Why I Don’t Usually Respond to Professor Leiter: An Example

In my recent post, “It’s Complicated,” I responded to a criticism of me published by Brian Leiter at his blog, Leiter Reports.

In my post, I wrote that “I usually don’t respond to Professor Leiter’s remarks about me,” though I did not say why. One reason is that to respond adequately to them here would divert Daily Nous away from its purpose. DN is supposed to be..

Mills College Board of Trustees Approves Revised Plan: Philosophy Not Entirely Eliminated

The Mills College Board of Trustees on Monday approved a revised version of its “Financial Stabilization Plan.” The original version of the plan called for the firing its tenured philosophy faculty, full professor and department head Marc Joseph and associate professor Jay Gupta, and eliminating the Philosophy Department. The approved plan fired Joseph (who had call..