harassment
TagFormer Postdoc Allegedly Threatens Philosophy Department (several updates)
A former postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Philosophy at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) yesterday by email made “general threats… against the philosophy department and members of it,” according to a message circulated in the department. (more…)
How What It Is Like to Be a Woman in Philosophy has Changed over the Past Decade
How have things changed for women in philosophy over the past decade? (more…)
Curry on George Floyd and the “Fake Outrage” of Academic Philosophy
“The fake outrage of academic philosophy amazes me.” (more…)
Students Disrupt Philosophy Professor’s Course, Call For Resignation
Students at the University of Texas, Austin marched into the classroom of philosophy and biology professor Sahotra Sarkar yesterday, calling him a “predatory professor” and protesting that the university failed to sufficiently hold him accountable for earlier misconduct. (more…)
When Academics Receive Threats of Violence and Death
“This week several of my colleagues in my department and faculty have received anonymous death threats and antisemitic hostility because they politely protested a student group’s invitation to Jordan Peterson.” (more…)
Fawning Sycophancy Is Unprofessional, Gross, and if Ongoing, the Professor’s Fault
“I only now your beautiful and exquisite message… I thank you for your infinite understanding and sensitivities which are always beyond measure.” (more…)
The Denigration of Black Women Philosophers and “Fields People of Color Specialize In”
Anita L. Allen, the Henry R. Silverman Professor of Law, professor of philosophy, and vice provost of faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, and the next president of the Eastern Division of the American Philosophical Association, speaks about her experiences as a black woman philosopher in an interview in The New York Times. (more…)
Criticism, Care, and Colleagues
“If you agree with me that we have an ethical responsibility to support our colleagues who are harassed for their public scholarship, and you also agree that it is extremely difficult for those colleagues to respond in an appropriate manner to reasoned critique, how do we protect our ability to critique each other?” (more…)
Disbelief, Inaction, and the Persistence of Harassment and Assault
Helen Beebee (Manchester) and Heather Widdows (Birmingham) have co-authored an essay at IAI, “Weinstein, Westminster, and Philosophy: Structures of Abuse,” on the recent spate of accounts of sexual harassment and assault. (more…)
A Woman’s Graduate School Experience at Princeton Philosophy in the 80’s
It was impossible for me to get credit for my own work… and for the faculty to put the two things together: me, Lisa Lloyd, the woman, and my own original work… So what can you say? (more…)
Judge Upholds Marquette’s Suspension Of Prof Who Smeared Philosophy PhD Student
In November of 2014, Marquette University Associate Professor of Political Science John McAdams made a philosophy graduate student at his school the target of a politically-motivated smear campaign. In February of 2015, the university sought his dismissal. (It was not the first time he he had run into trouble for engaging in harassing behavior towards students.) In ..
The Anti-Authoritarian Academic Code of Conduct (updated)
People are wondering how authoritarian the United States government will become under a Trump administration. There’s no way to know for sure. Perhaps the answer is: no more than it already is. Or perhaps Trump, who seems to be some combination of much less knowledgeable of and much less respectful of the limits of executive power than any previous U.S. president (e..
Marquette Update: McAdams Sues, University Releases Report
John McAdams, the associate professor of political science at Marquette University who, in the fall of 2014, launched a political attack on philosophy graduate student Cheryl Abbate based on falsehoods, misleading claims, and a surreptitious recording of her, and who was later suspended from his position for it, is suing Marquette. The Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Se..
Philosophy and the Internet Public
Though the internet is, in a number of ways, good for philosophy, it isn’t always good to philosophers. The needless hostility, harassment and scary threats, personal insults, bullheadedness, impatient demands, etc., widely broadcast for all to see (and discussed a bit here) can be a deterrent to participation and a nasty “reward” for engaging with the public.
Ex..
Ludlow Resigns
Northwestern University’s Vice President for University Relations, Alan K. Cubbage, has released the following statement:
Peter Ludlow, a Northwestern University professor of philosophy, resigned his position effective Monday, Nov. 2, 2015, and he is no longer employed by the University.
Northwestern University had initiated proceedings to terminate Ludlow’s e..
Grad Student Sues U. Miami, Colin McGinn, and Edward Erwin
The University of Miami graduate student who previously complained of sexual harassment by Colin McGinn has now filed a federal lawsuit against the university, McGinn, and McGinn’s former colleague, Edward Erwin. The Huffington Post reports:
She’s claiming the school violated its Title IX responsibilities by failing to fully investigate her sexual harassment clai..
Conference Anti-Harassment Wiki
The Geek Feminism Wiki, a site aimed primarily at people involved in computing and technology, has a “Conference anti-harrasment” page. Brought to my attention by Maarten Steenhagen (thanks!), the site has a sample conference anti-harassment policy, a resource page with suggestions and answers to frequently asked questions, and other information.
In answer to the..
Marquette: An Update (several updates)
The Marquette University administration continues to figure out what to do in response to associate professor of political science John McAdams’s unprofessional and harassing conduct towards philosophy graduate student Cheryl Abbate (previously), the abusive hate mail and commenting it led to, the media attention it generated, the visit by Westboro Baptist Church, a..
Student’s Suit Against Northwestern Dismissed
The lawsuit against Northwestern University by the student who alleges she was sexually assaulted by Peter Ludlow was thrown out by a federal judge earlier today. The lawsuit had claimed that the university had mishandled the student’s complaints, and asked for the university to pay her medical and legal bills, her tuition, and to compensate her for emotional distre..
Nussbaum on Stalkers, the Internet, the Law, and Medication
“Like a surprisingly large proportion of Americans, I have a cyberstalker.” So begins Martha Nussbaum’s lengthy and wide-ranging review, in The Nation, of Hate Crimes in Cyberspace by Danielle Keats Citron. Nussbaum (Chicago) goes on to describe her stalker, his stalking and her reactions to it, delving into the culture of the internet (including the effects of anon..
Hiring and “Unofficial” Information
The recent story about East Carolina’s offer to Colin McGinn has generated a variety of reactions, some of which concern what kinds of information it’s permissible for academic employers to take into account in deciding whether to make someone an offer. Of particular concern here is the status of information about a candidate’s past behavior that could be categorize..