Academic Freedom in a Time of Political Pressure

We, the undersigned faculty of the University of Colorado Denver, condemn the recent firing of a Texas A&M University Professor and removal of a Department Chair, Dean, and University President from their administrative positions—all because the professor discussed issues of gender identity in their university classroom.  In a related matter, it was recently reported that UC Berkeley has turned over the names of about 160 students, faculty and staff to the federal government, due to alleged cases of antisemitism related to pro-Palestine activities. We are outraged with these actions and the broader assault on academic freedom across the nation.  We call on our own institutional leaders to stand firmly for principles of academic freedom and to oppose any similar actions at our university.

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In the Texas A&M case, a student objected to a professor discussing the concept of there being more than two genders. The student complained that such a concept went against their religious beliefs and violated an executive order from President Trump declaring that there are only two genders. The professor replied that the subject matter is not illegal to teach and informed the student that they could leave the classroom if they wished. For this simple action of academic freedom and open discussion, the professor was charged by state legislators as perpetuating “DEI and LGBTQ indoctrination,” leading the Texas A&M system to fire the professor within one day and to call for a coursework audit of every class at its 12 universities.

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Increasingly, faculty and students are threatened that they must not teach or even speak about issues that politicians or influential parties might disfavor, or risk losing their university positions. Today, forbidden ideas are part of a national campaign demonizing LGBTQ+ members of our community, together with other vulnerable and historically excluded groups.

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Creating a hostile atmosphere restricting academic freedom of thought and instruction fundamentally undermines what a university should stand for. Renouncing the right of traditionally excluded groups to be a full part of our university community betrays our values of diversity and inclusiveness. But too often some political and university leaders are abandoning those principles in these times of stress. We share the position of the American Association of University Professors: “We are alarmed at the shameless exertion of pressure on university leaders by the nation’s politicians, by the universities’ most powerful donors, and by other interest groups. We are even more alarmed at how quickly our institutional leaders have capitulated to that pressure. In just a few months, too many university leaders have abandoned long-standing principles of academic freedom and shared governance that are meant to protect colleges from such outside influence. Policies guaranteeing academic freedom and free speech mean nothing if they are not upheld in times of stress.”

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These are challenging times, and they demand a principled defense of academic freedom. We stand with the statement of The Pride Community Center of Brazos Valley (PCCBV) and Aggie Allies of Texas A&M: “Students and faculty deserve better. [Students] deserve an environment where they can learn to think for themselves as informed adults, and where their professors can teach without fear.”

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THIS LETTER IS NOT A STATEMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO,

BUT ONLY OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO HAVE SIGNED IT. 

Titles and Departments are included for identification purposes only

and do not signify institutional endorsement.

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• AAUP Statement:  https://www.aaup.org/reports-publications/aaup-policies-reports/policy-statements/freedom-expression-and-campus-speech  

• PCCBV and Aggie Allies Statement:  https://www.kxxv.com/news/local-news/in-your-neighborhood/brazos-county/texas-a-m-university/local-lgbtq-groups-condemn-recent-firing-of-texas-a-m-lecturer-over-gender-identity-discussion