Another Seuss Cancellation Thread (Summer 2023)

[marshwiggle]

IHE: When Discrimination Attends Your Conference

The policy references both a joint Society for Classical Studies–Archaeological Institute of America "rapid response" team and a Joint AIA-SCS Harassment and Discrimination Committee. That committee looks into formal complaints that require postconference investigation, invites written responses from the accused and recommends possible sanctions to the AIA and SCS governing boards.

Maybe the "solution" is to have segregated conferences.

Huh.  It's sad, very sad, and not the way I would have it...but that's not the worst idea.

So do you ask people about their racial identity on the registration form, or do you just have guards at the door denying entry to people who look "wrong"?
(Or, I suppose you could have rules about which institution you have to be employed by to present at a given conference.)

[Wahoo Redux]

This one is a weird one.

Salt Lake Tribune: Utah State graduate settles racism lawsuit for $45K after he said professor drew 'coon caricature' of him

Noel hit the tipping point in 2020, he said, and reported his concerns to the university after the white professor drew a cartoon image that Noel feels was supposed to be an exaggerated depiction of him as "the angry Black man."

In the drawing, Noel's tall, groomed afro was depicted even taller and sticking out wildly. His thick eyebrows were thicker and angry and furrowed, along with a huge mustache that took up much of his face. His skin was darker, too.

[apl68]

Drawing a caricature of a student one has a history of bad relations with doesn't seem very professional.  If it's of a student of a different race, then it's going to be very easy for the aggrieved student to see racism in it, caricature's tendency to exaggerate an individual's prominent features being what it is. 

I guess add "drawing caricatures of your students" (Even if you think the student will never see or hear about it) to the long list of things that common sense would already suggest is a bad idea.  I hope the understandably unhappy student can take a deep breath and move on from here.  And that the unnamed prof is thankful he didn't get publicly outed over this, and understands not to pull stuff like this in the future.

[marshwiggle]

Drawing a caricature of a student one has a history of bad relations with doesn't seem very professional.  If it's of a student of a different race, then it's going to be very easy for the aggrieved student to see racism in it, caricature's tendency to exaggerate an individual's prominent features being what it is. 

I guess add "drawing caricatures of your students" (Even if you think the student will never see or hear about it) to the long list of things that common sense would already suggest is a bad idea.  I hope the understandably unhappy student can take a deep breath and move on from here.  And that the unnamed prof is thankful he didn't get publicly outed over this, and understands not to pull stuff like this in the future.

I agree with al of this, but there is some context:

The mistreatment, Noel said, started in October 2018, during his first semester at Utah State.

A computer he was using in a lab shorted out and deleted four pages of his assignment. Frustrated, Noel acknowledged, he shouted a few profanities and pushed a chair. The professor learned of the outburst, Noel said, and emailed Noel to say they needed to meet to talk about it.
At the meeting, the professor allegedly accused Noel of being violent and questioned whether he was abusive to others, including his wife.

Noel said the professor then asked him in a derogatory tone: "Was that you going full Haitian?"

Again, not great judgement on the part of the prof, but the angry outburst being the basis of their first contact probably got them off on the wrong foot right away.

Trying to overcome negative first impressions is hard, but necessary, especially when you're going to have to interact over the long term.

[Wahoo Redux]

Texas Tribune: Texas A&M suspended professor accused of criticizing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in lecture

Lower Deck:

The professor, an expert on the opioids crisis, was placed on paid administrative leave and investigated, raising questions about the extent of political interference in higher education, particularly in health-related matters.

Joy Alonzo, a respected opioid expert, was in a panic.

The Texas A&M University professor had just returned home from giving a routine lecture on the opioid crisis at the University of Texas Medical Branch when she learned a student had accused her of disparaging Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick during the talk.

In the few hours it took to drive from Galveston, the complaint had made its way to her supervisors, and Alonzo's job was suddenly at risk.

All the particulars are not known yet, of course, but how can conservatives support this level of McCarthuistic behavior on the part of Republican politicians?  This is very dangerous behavior.

[Parasaurolophus]

Texas Tribune: Texas A&M suspended professor accused of criticizing Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in lecture

Lower Deck:

The professor, an expert on the opioids crisis, was placed on paid administrative leave and investigated, raising questions about the extent of political interference in higher education, particularly in health-related matters.

Joy Alonzo, a respected opioid expert, was in a panic.

The Texas A&M University professor had just returned home from giving a routine lecture on the opioid crisis at the University of Texas Medical Branch when she learned a student had accused her of disparaging Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick during the talk.

In the few hours it took to drive from Galveston, the complaint had made its way to her supervisors, and Alonzo's job was suddenly at risk.

All the particulars are not known yet, of course, but how can conservatives support this level of McCarthuistic behavior on the part of Republican politicians?  This is very dangerous behavior.

Could you have a more blatant and clearcut first amendment violation? The lawsuit is going to cost A&M a bundle.

[Wahoo Redux]

Calgary Herald: Controversial Calgary professor sues University of Lethbridge for nixing guest lecture

A controversial Calgary professor is suing the University of Lethbridge over its decision to cancel a guest lecture she was scheduled to deliver at the school in February.

Frances Widdowson — who was fired from Mount Royal University following heavy criticism of her comments on Canada's residential school system and the Black Lives Matter movement — is suing the southern Alberta institution alongside student Jonah Pickle and philosophy professor Paul Viminitz, who invited her to the school. The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms filed the lawsuit July 26 on behalf of the three applicants.

The planned lecture was to cover how "woke-ism" in post-secondary institutions threatens academic freedom, but it was cancelled amid backlash and a reprisal of Widdowson's views by students and faculty. She said her experience at U of L is a "textbook case" of the topic she planned to speak about.

[apl68]

Calgary Herald: Controversial Calgary professor sues University of Lethbridge for nixing guest lecture

The planned lecture was to cover how "woke-ism" in post-secondary institutions threatens academic freedom, but it was cancelled amid backlash and a reprisal of Widdowson's views by students and faculty. She said her experience at U of L is a "textbook case" of the topic she planned to speak about.

It does rather sound like it there.

[Parasaurolophus]

Calgary Herald: Controversial Calgary professor sues University of Lethbridge for nixing guest lecture

A controversial Calgary professor is suing the University of Lethbridge over its decision to cancel a guest lecture she was scheduled to deliver at the school in February.

Frances Widdowson — who was fired from Mount Royal University following heavy criticism of her comments on Canada's residential school system and the Black Lives Matter movement — is suing the southern Alberta institution alongside student Jonah Pickle and philosophy professor Paul Viminitz, who invited her to the school. The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms filed the lawsuit July 26 on behalf of the three applicants.

The planned lecture was to cover how "woke-ism" in post-secondary institutions threatens academic freedom, but it was cancelled amid backlash and a reprisal of Widdowson's views by students and faculty. She said her experience at U of L is a "textbook case" of the topic she planned to speak about.

I very much doubt that lawsuit has any chance whatsoever of success. Her event was cancelled, but that doesn't mean her Charter rights to freedom of assembly, thought, expression, etc. were violated. She'd be better off suing her former institution over her firing, although even that would be pretty uncertain, given the givens.

[Parasaurolophus]

Some updates on Texas A&M's decision to bow to political pressure from right wing loonies and offer Kathleen McElroy progressively worse job offers until there was nothing left. They've settled for $1 million.

This blog post summarizes what's in the paywalled articles. Of particular interest are those text messages between the dean and the president (paywalled at the Chronicle, available in the blog post). 0_o

[MarathonRunner]

Calgary Herald: Controversial Calgary professor sues University of Lethbridge for nixing guest lecture

A controversial Calgary professor is suing the University of Lethbridge over its decision to cancel a guest lecture she was scheduled to deliver at the school in February.

Frances Widdowson — who was fired from Mount Royal University following heavy criticism of her comments on Canada's residential school system and the Black Lives Matter movement — is suing the southern Alberta institution alongside student Jonah Pickle and philosophy professor Paul Viminitz, who invited her to the school. The Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms filed the lawsuit July 26 on behalf of the three applicants.

The planned lecture was to cover how "woke-ism" in post-secondary institutions threatens academic freedom, but it was cancelled amid backlash and a reprisal of Widdowson's views by students and faculty. She said her experience at U of L is a "textbook case" of the topic she planned to speak about.

I very much doubt that lawsuit has any chance whatsoever of success. Her event was cancelled, but that doesn't mean her Charter rights to freedom of assembly, thought, expression, etc. were violated. She'd be better off suing her former institution over her firing, although even that would be pretty uncertain, given the givens.

Yeah, I think it has zero chance. Given the well documented negative and generational effects of residential schools, not to mention the Calls for Reconciliation, I don't think any lawsuit she would launch has a chance of success. Residential schools did so much incredible harm, and killed so many innocents, I have no idea how anyone in their right mind can claim they were beneficial. The harms of residential schools are well documented and ongoing, given the last one only closed in the 1990s. Sadly racism against Indigenous peoples still exists in Canada. I'm very fortunate and privileged to pass as white.

[jimbogumbo]

Here is the Texas A&M system report:https://www.tamus.edu/internal-review/

[Wahoo Redux]

It seems to me that our conservative Forumites have taken a summer vacation, but I sure would be interested in their take on this one:

NBC News: Shakespeare gets caught in Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' laws

[marshwiggle]

It seems to me that our conservative Forumites have taken a summer vacation, but I sure would be interested in their take on this one:

NBC News: Shakespeare gets caught in Florida's 'Don't Say Gay' laws

From the article:

Several Shakespeare plays use suggestive puns and innuendo, and it is implied that the protagonists have had premarital sex in "Romeo and Juliet." Shakespeare's books will be available for checkout at media centers at schools, said the district, which covers the Tampa area.

"First and foremost, we have not excluded Shakespeare from our high school curriculum. Students will still have the physical books to read excerpts in class," the statement said. "Curriculum guides are continually reviewed and refined throughout the year to align with state standards and current law."

My take on this one:

It's no surprise that many books that have long been accepted (including the Bible) would be restricted under laws like this. (And to be honest, churches don't routinely expose children to some of the more graphic stories in the Bible.) Personally, I'd rather see a consistently-applied rule that is overly restrictive rather than no rule at all.

One issue I'd like to hear other peoples' take on is whether history matters at all. To my mind, books that have been widely read and studied over long periods of time, even centuries, have a level of legitimacy that something written recently and mostly unknown does not. Something that has shown a timeless appeal is in a different category than something tied to a very specific current zeitgeist, which will probably disappear into the mists of time in few decades, if not years, and whose major appeal is its current "controversial" content.

[downer]

Idaho
TITLE 18 CRIMES AND PUNISHMENTS
CHAPTER 87 NO PUBLIC FUNDS FOR ABORTION ACT
https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/title18/t18ch87/

Pushback from educators and lawyers:
https://www.boisestatepublicradio.org/politics-government/2023-08-09/idaho-abortion-lawsuit-aclu-attorney-general