academic freedom
TagJudge Orders Texas State to Reinstate Robinson
A federal court judge ruled today that Texas State University must reinstate philosopher Idris Robinson, whom the university fired from his assistant professorship over a talk he gave about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (more…)
Texas versus Freedom: Another Philosopher Is Leaving a Public University in Texas
Christy Mag Uidhir will be giving up his position as professor of philosophy at the University of Houston. (more…)
Free Speech Fine Against Sussex Following Philosopher’s Resignation Overturned
About a year ago, the UK government’s Office for Students (OfS) (whose “free speech czar” is philosopher Arif Ahmed) levied a fine of £585,000 on the University of Sussex after investigating how the university handled the case of philosopher Kathleen Stock, who resigned after students protested her views and called for her to be fired. (more…)
Letter Supporting Fired Texas State Philosophy Professor and Boycott of University
Last month it was reported that Idris Robinson, a tenure-track assistant professor of philosophy at Texas State University, is suing several university officials for violating his constitutional rights after they told him he would have his contract terminated in May, because of complaints about a talk he gave last year on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. (more…)..
Peterson from Texas A&M to SMU
Martin Peterson, currently professor of philosophy at Texas A&M University, will be moving to Southern Methodist University (SMU). (more…)
Top University in Iran Bombed
Early this morning, Sharif University of Technology, Iran’s leading technical university, was bombed. (more…)
Trans-Exclusionary Philosopher Seeks to Exclude Trans Philosopher
Jonathan Pike, a professor of philosophy at Open University who defends trans-exclusionary (aka “gender critical”) views has submitted a formal complaint about the appointment of his colleague, professor of philosophy Sophie Grace Chappell, a trans woman, to the Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2029 subpanel for philosophy, according to a report in Times Higher E..
Texas State Fires Philosophy Professor Over Off-Campus Talk on the Israeli-Palestine Conflict
Idris Robinson, a tenure-track assistant professor of philosophy at Texas State University, is suing several university officials for violating his constitutional rights after they told him he would have his contract terminated in May, because of complaints about a talk he gave last year “on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict off-campus in another state where a fight ..
Faculty & Students at Ghent Call for Resignation of “Race Science” Philosopher (update: reply from Cofnas)
Faculty and Students at Ghent University are objecting to the university’s recent hiring of philosopher Nathan Cofnas. (more…)
Florida Implements Stronger Thought Policing
With measures borrowed from history’s totalitarian regimes, political leaders in Florida are taking unprecedented steps to indoctrinate students and prevent them from learning about the world in ways that may lead them to question the leaders’ ideology. (more…)
Activism and the Pursuit of Knowledge
The pursuit of knowledge generates disagreement, including disagreement about how to pursue knowledge. (more…)
APA Joins Other Organizations in Calling for Texas A&M to Rescind Censorship Policies
The American Philosophical Association (APA) has signed onto to a letter by PEN America to the Texas A&M University System Regents “to request that they rescind two policies, passed in fall 2025, that have resulted in the censorship of academic courses across the institution, and the announced closure of the University’s Women’s & Gender Studies Program.” (more…)..
Tenure to Be Eliminated at Many Public Colleges in Oklahoma
It appears that no new tenure-track hires will be made at public regional universities and community colleges in Oklahoma. (more…)
When the University President Endorses the “Indoctrination” Narrative (multiple updates)
For some reason, Renu Khator, the longtime president of the University of Houston and chancellor of the University of Houston System, has felt the need to remind her faculty that “our responsibility is to give the ability to form their own opinions, not force a particular one on them. Our guiding principle is to teach them, not indoctrinate them.” (more…)
Justifying the Inclusion of Race, Gender, Sexuality (etc.) in Philosophy Courses
Some university administrations are (as we have seen) trying to prevent professors from teaching about topics related to gender, sexuality, and race. (more…)
University of Austin’s Experiment: a Report
“I’ve never felt my speech was so chilled as it was in the classroom at UATX.” (more…)
Texas A&M Administrators Will Cancel Your Course If You Don’t Tell Them Exactly Where And What Its Race And Gender Parts Are*
Texas A&M University (TAMU) administrators cancelled “Ethics in Public Policy,” a graduate course in the university’s Bush School of Government and Public Service, because they rejected as too vague its professor’s explanation of when and how race and gender issues may come up in the course. (more…)
A Dishonest Response from TAMU President Tommy Williams
The interim president of Texas A&M, Tommy Williams, has publicly replied to last week’s reports of his university telling a philosophy professor to remove readings by Plato and others from the syllabus of his moral problems course. (more…)
The APA Board’s Open Letter to Trans Philosophers
At its November 2025 meeting, the Board of the American Philosophical Association (APA) approved a statement addressed “first and foremost, to trans members of our profession,” and to “those who teach and research in the philosophy of sex and gender, and philosophy that addresses LGBTQ+ issues,” but also to “all philosophers… because threats to any one corner of o..
Legalize Plato: The Shirt
In light of Texas A&M’s decision to tell a philosophy professor to remove readings by Plato from his course, one enterprising philosopher has come up with a way for people to voice their support for academic freedom. (more…)
Texas A&M Bans Plato (further updates)
Drop the race and gender material from your course and the Plato readings, or teach a different course. You have a day to decide.
Texas Tech Chancellor Opposes Freedom, Endorses Inefficiency
Texas Tech University System Chancellor Brandon Creighton, in a memo yesterday to the presidents of the universities in the system, announced a policy to “ensure that classroom instruction fully complies with state and federal law, Board of Regents policy, and Chancellor directives.” The memo includes a remarkable flowchart. (more…)
The Charade of Banning “Advocacy”
“Leaders at these institutions want to ban only certain topics from discussion. To do so, they have issued vague directives that no one knows how to interpret.” (more…)
A Mess at Texas A&M
The Texas A&M University System’s Board of Regents took steps yesterday to impose its conservative ideology on college students by prohibiting professors from teaching certain ideas about race and gender. (more…)
Opposing Orthodoxy about Heterodoxy
“Whenever I see people engaged in philosophical debate or argument, I want to see people trying to win. I like my philosophy adversarial, aggressive, combative, and even hostile. I think there are some good reasons for this approach… but I also think it’s more fun that way. (more…)
Philosophers at Clemson Defend the Academic Freedom of Colleagues
Two philosophers at Clemson University, each in their own way, have responded to their employer’s punishment of faculty for their comments following the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. (more…)
Speech under Authoritarianism (updated)
Governments in the United States are ramping up their attacks on freedom of speech, with state and federal officials getting people—including professors—fired or investigated for expressing their opinions about public figures, and the president suggesting he will shut down media that is critical of him and his allies. (more…)
What Will It Be Like To Be An Academic In Ten Years?
Many of you reading these words are young or middle-aged academics. Many of you envision yourselves continuing to work or starting careers in academia. (more…)