academic freedom
TagA Tale of Two Resignations
Two philosophy professors recently announced their resignations from their respective universities. Both say that their administrations failed to adequately defend their freedoms and protect them from harassment and threats. But there are some differences between the stories that affect what might be learned from them. (more…)
The Syracuse Strategy
The Chancellor of Syracuse University, Kent Syverud, and David Van Slyke, Dean of the university’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, have issued a joint statement strongly defending the freedom of speech of Jenn Jackson, assistant professor of political science, after she faced calls for her dismissal because of remarks of hers on Twitter regarding t..
Academic Freedom & COVID-Related Topics
How are universities regulating how faculty may discuss COVID-related topics such as mask wearing and vaccinations with students? (more…)
Concerns about Institutional Credit for Public Philosophy
When it comes to professional advancement, such as tenure and promotion, more and more philosophy departments are giving faculty credit for public philosophy—usually as service, but sometimes, depending on its form, as research or teaching. Does this institutionalizing of public philosophy come with problems? (more…)
Philosophy Prof’s Lawsuit Against University On Addressing Trans Students Reinstated
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has reversed an earlier dismissal of a philosophy professor’s lawsuit against his employer, Shawnee State University, for violating his First and Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Complementing Defenses of Academic Freedom with Understanding & Advice
As reported earlier this week, there’s a new organization, the Academic Freedom Alliance (AFA), that aims to defend faculty whose academic freedom is being threatened. (more…)
Academic Freedom Alliance Formed
A group of scholars have created a new non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the academic freedom of higher education faculty (more…)
Mount St. Mary’s Students Call for Resignation of Philosophy Professor
Students at Mount St. Mary’s University in Maryland are calling for the resignation of philosophy professor Joshua Hochschild because of an article he wrote earlier this month for The American Mind, a publication of the Claremont Institute, a conservative advocacy organization. (more…)
Philosopher Launches Anti-Trans Website; Colleagues & Others Object
Holly Lawford-Smith, associate professor of philosophy at the University of Melbourne, has created a website that solicits and publishes anonymous complaints about the presence of trans women in typically women-only spaces. (more…)
Conference Series On Oppressive Speech Disinvites Trans-Exclusionary Philosopher
Leibniz-Zentrum Allgemeine Sprachwissenschaft (ZAS), a publicly-funded research institute in Berlin that is holding a series of conferences on oppressive speech between now and May, has removed a philosopher from its program after complaints about her planned talk. (more…)
Zoom Censors Online Session on Zoom Censorship
“We Will Not Be Silenced,” an academic webinar about Zoom’s decision to cancel an earlier academic webinar, was canceled by Zoom. (more…)
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…)
Controversy at Philosophical Psychology Leads to Editor’s Resignation
In December 2019, the journal Philosophical Psychology published an article calling for scholars to take more seriously genetics-based approaches to research on race and intelligence. Yesterday, an editor of the journal announced his resignation. What happened? (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.
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…)
Benatar Responds to Student’s Accusations and the Reporting about Them (updated)
In March, 2016, a student at the University of Cape Town publicly announced that she was facing a disciplinary proceeding at her school because she called her philosophy professor a racist. I reported on the story here. (more…)
Bad Publisher Behavior? Wiley and Philosophy & Public Affairs
Is there reason to be concerned about academic freedom and editorial autonomy at journals published by Wiley? (more…)
Quebec Government Deplatforms Daniel Weinstock (updated)
Daniel Weinstock, a philosopher on the Faculty of Law at McGill University and director of the McGill Institute for Health and Social Policy, was disinvited by the Quebec government from speaking at a meeting about reforming the mandatory ethics and religious culture course taught in the province’s schools. (more…)
Editorial and Advisory Board of Journal Resign En Masse
“We recount our small act of resistance here because we think there may be lessons for the wider academic community.” (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…)
Flourishing with Controversy: How Philosophy of Race Does It
One of the popular narratives about higher education is that the discussion of and disagreement over controversial ideas is imperiled, owing to the dominance of political correctness on college campuses. (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.
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…)
Epistemology and Free Speech
“When we have good reason to think that the position advocated by a potential speaker is wrong, we have an epistemic reason in favour of no-platforming: we can be confident that providing her with a platform will produce evidence in favour of her views that it is very difficult to rebut (and which can’t be rebutted by argument).” (more…)