How Bad Are Most Universities On First Amendment?

[Kathianne]

Note, these are graduate students, law school no less. You know, the academy where Critical Race Theory, which really doesn't exist, is discussed/debated in theory only?

I swear that swooning is returning in the mid-two thousands.

https://campusreform.org/article?id=16754

[Gunny]

Note, these are graduate students, law school no less. You know, the academy where Critical Race Theory, which really doesn't exist, is discussed/debated in theory only?

I swear that swooning is returning in the mid-two thousands.

https://campusreform.org/article?id=16754But the left claims no one wants to have an actual discussion that addresses race:rolleyes: Can't even redact a word.

I've been of the notion for a long time now that no one is actually allowed to discuss race. It's nothing but a weapon for the left and/because the right runs in fear of the topic. That's how cancer grows.

[Kathianne]

But the left claims no one wants to have an actual discussion that addresses race:rolleyes: Can't even redact a word.

I've been of the notion for a long time now that no one is actually allowed to discuss race. It's nothing but a weapon for the left and/because the right runs in fear of the topic. That's how cancer grows.
FIRE is becoming what the ACLU was in 60s and 70s, on campus. They push back and sue if get non-response. They publicize universities, professors, and students that push back against free speech.

[Gunny]

FIRE is becoming what the ACLU was in 60s and 70s, on campus. They push back and sue if get non-response. They publicize universities, professors, and students that push back against free speech.
Bucket of water on a forest fire. Seems like a lot are pushing back against curtailment of FOS. That is one of the things I like about the new VA LtGov. She just called BS on the left's crap and nailed her opponent on the issue.

We should be allowed to discuss whatever we choose, and seems to me, controversial issues are what need discussing the most. Instead, we have students feeling threatened by ideas -- words. IMO, it more intellectual laziness than anything else. It's easier to cry foul and point a deflective finger in the direction of the messenger than it is to rationally/logically do the work required to address the actual issue. Sadly, it appears to be the norm anymore rather than the exception.

[Kathianne]

Bucket of water on a forest fire. Seems like a lot are pushing back against curtailment of FOS. That is one of the things I like about the new VA LtGov. She just called BS on the left's crap and nailed her opponent on the issue.

We should be allowed to discuss whatever we choose, and seems to me, controversial issues are what need discussing the most. Instead, we have students feeling threatened by ideas -- words. IMO, it more intellectual laziness than anything else. It's easier to cry foul and point a deflective finger in the direction of the messenger than it is to rationally/logically do the work required to address the actual issue. Sadly, it appears to be the norm anymore rather than the exception.
All change begins with small buckets, whether a conscious choice of one woman to remain seated on the front of the bus or colonists giving up tea in response to what they considered unfair taxation.

[Gunny]

All change begins with small buckets, whether a conscious choice of one woman to remain seated on the front of the bus or colonists giving up tea in response to what they considered unfair taxation.I'm not faulting the effort at all. Just lacing it with my usual cynicism :)

I have no problem with change for the better. I have a serious problem with change for the sake of change. The latter appears to be the MO of the left. As it applies to the OP, I completely support "change" that allows this Prof to directly address an issue that the left uses as a weapon and refuses to let go of because it would require actual, individual as well as collective achievement.

As opposed to "change" the way that Prof thinks and what he's allowed to say because he's upsetting my personal little glass bubble of excuses to under-achieve and blame any failure on him rather than my own behavior.

[fj1200]

Note, these are graduate students, law school no less. You know, the academy where Critical Race Theory, which really doesn't exist, is discussed/debated in theory only?

I swear that swooning is returning in the mid-two thousands.

https://campusreform.org/article?id=16754

A. I wouldn't have expected that at UIC.
B. What do they think the real world is like?
C. Most of the probably listen to music with worse language and scenarios.

[Kathianne]

A. I wouldn't have expected that at UIC.
B. What do they think the real world is like?
C. Most of the probably listen to music with worse language and scenarios.
U of I was once a school worthy of its reputation. Then again, the highly desirable school districts in metro area, i.e., mostly 5 collar counties of Chicago, fully incorporated Zinn texts into classes about 15 years ago. The results are becoming obvious.

[Kathianne]

U of I was once a school worthy of its reputation. Then again, the highly desirable school districts in metro area, i.e., mostly 5 collar counties of Chicago, fully incorporated Zinn texts into classes about 15 years ago. The results are becoming obvious.

Zinn based teaching is a precursor of what is now being called CRT or by other labels.

[Kathianne]

As a general pronouncement, we may have a winner:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/columbia-university-employees-wrong-pronouns-fired

[jimnyc]

Call me "they" or get fired? Or similar to that... "Honey, got fired today for not calling someone they". How fu**ing stupid is this crap getting?

[Kathianne]

Lo and behold, I've been reading on this all day:

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/484311/

[Gunny]

As a general pronouncement, we may have a winner:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/columbia-university-employees-wrong-pronouns-firedScrew them. I address people according what they are, not what they're trying to be and support anyone else doing so. I truly hope it offends those that believe they can dictate their fantasies onto my reality.

As an aside, I wonder if the vast majority of these boys that wanna be girls realize just what ugly-ass girls they make? Harvey Korman looked better on Carol Burnett.

[Gunny]

Call me "they" or get fired? Or similar to that... "Honey, got fired today for not calling someone they". How fu**ing stupid is this crap getting?Oh my 13 years old granddaughter can give you a class on the shit. And how just because you carry a baby doesn't make you the mother :cuckoo:

I, of course, am the most disrespectful person in the Universe :thanks:

[Gunny]

Lo and behold, I've been reading on this all day:

https://pjmedia.com/instapundit/484311/


Exit quote: “We expect to face significant resistance to this project. There are networks of donors, foundations, and activists that uphold and promote the status quo. There are parents who expect the status quo. There are students who demand it, along with even greater restrictions on academic freedom. And there are administrators and professors who will feel threatened by any disruption to the system. We welcome their opprobrium and will regard it as vindication.”
:)

[Kathianne]

:)


A bit more, Gunny

https://unherd.com/2021/11/american-education-needs-a-revolution/


OpinionAmerican education needs a revolution

A new university will end the climate of fear

BY AYAAN HIRSI ALI (https://unherd.com/author/ayaan-hirsi/)


...

In both incidents, the challenge to academic freedom and free speech was posed by Islamists. But that didn’t disturb me: as an apostate who has spent many years criticising them, and received death threats in return, I was used to their antipathy.

Fast forward to 2021, however, and it seems I was wrong to dismiss this censorious attitude as an Islamist impulse. Hardly a week goes by without reports (https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/08/31/fire-launches-new-database-tracking-attacks-speech) of a professor being protested, disciplined, and sometimes fired for violating the new and stringent norms of academic discourse. We read of scholars such as Kathleen Stock (https://unherd.com/2021/11/kathleen-stock-i-wont-be-silenced/) being driven to resign from their positions after constant hounding and threats. We read of a lecturer (https://bariweiss.substack.com/p/mit-abandons-its-mission-and-me) being no-platformed for daring to suggest that evaluations should be based on academic merit. We read of a Native American student being forced to apologise by a Yale University diversity tsar for making a harmless joke (https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10089259/Yale-law-student-pressured-apologize-using-phrase-trap-house.html) in an email.

And that’s just in the past month. We have reached a point where grace and forgiveness are extinct on American campuses; where reputations built over decades can be destroyed in a week. Some people still describe the phenomenon as “political correctness”. But this is much more like a religious movement (https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2021/10/new-puritans-mob-justice-canceled/619818/). It’s hardly surprising that the Islamists’ opportunity to piggyback on existing illiberal and intolerant forces is now even greater.

Social justice, critical race theory, diversity, equality and inclusion — such terms are difficult to object to when taken at face value. And as a consequence, they have grown and spread like weeds in almost every institution. By the time we recognised the deeply illiberal notions that lurked behind these bland phrases, it was too late; they had already taken over whole departments, embedding their extensive roots into the fabric of academic institutions.

...

Professors will be able to explore ideas and topics that are taboo elsewhere, without threats to their reputation, livelihoods or well-being. Unlike nearly a fifth of universities (https://freebeacon.com/campus/study-diversity-statements-required-for-one-fifth-of-academic-jobs/), we will not require statements of commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. All we are looking for is a commitment to learning. And that doesn’t seem to be in short supply: within 12 hours of announcing the University of Austin, more than 900 academics (https://twitter.com/uaustinorg/status/1457831990418411527) submitted inquiries seeking a position.

Their students, once applications open, will be accepted on the basis of merit, based on an admissions exam. The university states: “UATX will not arbitrarily factor in race, gender, class or any other form of identity into its decisions. UATX stands firmly against that sort of discrimination in admissions.” Of course, none of this matters if spaces are only reserved for a wealthy elite. So we are working on a financial model that will help lower tuition costs and provide scholarships or bursaries, providing an equal opportunity for students, regardless of their financial background.

There are those who fear that the political extremes of the Left and Right may one day destroy the republic. But the only way to destroy America is to destroy our market system. As long as individuals have choice and the market self-corrects, we will continue to thrive. Where there is demand — and the result in Virginia prove there is demand — the supply will follow.

This is what the University of Austin symbolises: a new choice for all those disillusioned with the established institutions. For too long we have looked on as universities have been disfigured, blissfully unaware that all we needed to do was create our own. Let’s hope this is the beginning of a new Renaissance.

[Gunny]

A bit more, @Gunny (http://www.debatepolicy.com/member.php?u=30)

https://unherd.com/2021/11/american-education-needs-a-revolution/Well, I got a new word for the Gunny vocab: "iliberal" :).

I'm all for this. As stated, it stands for just about everything I do. I don't care what color, religion, gender or whatever the Hell else you think you are, can you hump ammo? Perhaps that's simplifying the matter, but it's to the point. This is a school. Can you achieve academically to make the cut? SImple issue and simple question. Yes or no answer.

Now we can sit back and wait for the left/MSM/iliberal attacks, discrimination lawsuits, etc. One would think all these believers in diversity would welcome something way more diverse than they.