Academic Freedom
CategoryIllusion 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…)
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.
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…)
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…)
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..
It’s Complicated
I’ve been criticized for saying that the issue behind the attempt of some students at Oxford to stop having John Finnis teach required courses* is “morally and practically complicated.” How strong a criticism is this? (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…)
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…)
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…)
Faculty Job Security & Academic Freedom
Seventy-three percent of faculty at institutions of higher education in the United States are neither tenured nor on the tenure-track, according to a new report from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP). (more…)
The Difference Between Snowflakes and Champions of Free Speech
What is the difference between those accused of being whiny, coddled, politically correct snowflakes and those who are considered brave champions of free speech? (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…)
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…)
Wisconsin Supreme Court Sides With Professor Who Smeared Philosophy Grad Student
The Wisconsin Supreme court ruled today that it was impermissible for Marquette University to fire John McAdams, an associate professor or political science, for his hostile and misleading online writings about a philosophy graduate student at the school. (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…)
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…)
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…)
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…)
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…)
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…)
“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…)
Censorship of Philosophy in Hong Kong
Politically-motivated censorship of philosophy in Hong Kong has “clearly become worse” over the past few years, says Wong Kwok-kui, a philosopher at Hong Kong Baptist University. (more…)