Free Speech Matters: A Statement on the Ongoing Campus Protests and the Upcoming Congressional Hearing
2024年5月15日 - 3:08AM
Academic freedom and freedom of expression are fundamental to
higher education. Where these freedoms operate, ideas are shared,
challenged, discussed, and debated without fear of retribution or
censorship—even when those ideas are unpopular, even when those
ideas are offensive. Through this free exchange of ideas in pursuit
of truth, knowledge advances and expands. Learning and
understanding result when different points of view and deeply held
beliefs are expressed freely, questioned openly, and evaluated
critically. This is the essential purpose of a college or
university in a diverse, democratic society.
While the boundaries of free expression are often contested,
hatred and intimidation have no place on a college campus. With
freedom comes responsibility, and no freedom is without reasonable
limits. Yet, as places of open inquiry and inclusion, colleges and
universities must treat the protection of academic freedom and
freedom of expression as their highest priority. In the current
context, shaped by the spread of campus protests in response to the
Israel-Hamas war, this means responding to the discomfort and
disruption of student activism in ways appropriate to institutions
whose purpose is to educate and engage, not to discipline or
silence. In doing so, they demonstrate that protecting these
fundamental freedoms and ensuring both the safety of all members of
the campus community and the unimpeded operation of the college or
university are not mutually exclusive goals.
As college and university leaders continue to grapple with the
challenges posed by the ongoing campus protests, those challenges
are being compounded and widened by unprecedented political
interference in higher education. Since 2021, state governments
across the country have proposed or enacted restrictions on what
can be taught and discussed at colleges and universities; sought to
dismantle campus efforts to promote diversity, equity, and
inclusion; and targeted tenure and accreditation, key pillars
upholding academic freedom and institutional autonomy. This
alarming government overreach has lately moved onto the national
stage, taking campus responses to the Israel-Hamas war as a pretext
to exert political pressure on college and university leaders to
restrict academic freedom and freedom of expression.
Next week, the US House of Representatives Committee on
Education and the Workforce will hold its third hearing ostensibly
focused on antisemitism at colleges and universities. The hearing
is likely to be, as the two prior hearings were, performative
rather than informative and orchestrated to yield “viral” moments
that can be used to feed a partisan narrative about higher
education. Yet the hearing must be seen for what it is: a further
escalation in an ongoing partisan attack on higher education that
proceeds by taking aim at academic values and principles that are
fundamental to advancing knowledge, developing an informed
citizenry, and serving the common good. For a uniquely diverse
national system of higher education whose unrivaled quality depends
on a model of governance intended to shield it from direct
government control and political interference, this attack
constitutes an existential threat.
About AAC&U
The American Association of Colleges and Universities
(AAC&U) is a global membership organization dedicated to
advancing the democratic purposes of higher education by promoting
equity, innovation, and excellence in liberal education. Through
our programs and events, publications and research, public
advocacy, and campus-based projects, AAC&U serves as a catalyst
and facilitator for innovations that improve educational quality
and equity and that support the success of all students. In
addition to accredited public and private, two-year, and four-year
colleges and universities and state higher education systems and
agencies throughout the United States, our membership includes
degree-granting higher education institutions in more than
twenty-five countries as well as other organizations and
individuals. To learn more, visit www.aacu.org.
David Tritelli
American Association of Colleges and Universities
(202) 888-0811
tritelli@aacu.org