BY JOERG TIEDE
The recent creation of the Professor Watchlist was met by a number of responses. Among those is the open letter circulated by the AAUP, inviting faculty to stand in solidarity with their colleagues and add their names to the Professor Watchlist. As of this posting, almost 12,000 individuals have signed on. In addition to shows of solidarity, some targeted faculty members have written first person accounts of their experiences. AAUP member Beth Lueck wrote about being targeted by the right-wing media here on the Academe blog. Several other faculty members have also posted accounts of finding themselves on the watchlist. I am collecting the ones I have come across so far here.
- George Yancy: I am a Dangerous Professor.
- Heather Cox Richardson: ‘I Will Not Shut Up. America Is Still Worth Fighting For.’
- Robert Jensen: How I got listed as an educator with a radical agenda on the Professor Watchlist.
- Katherine Knott: What It’s Like to Be Named to a Watch List of ‘Anti-American’ Professors.
- Anthea Butler: I’m on the ‘professor watchlist.’ It’s a ploy to undermine free speech.
- Tobin Miller Shearer: Watchlisted.
- Matthew Pratt Guterl: I’m on the Professor Watchlist—and it’s exposed a radical truth about the future of social justice.
- Derek Mong: An Open Letter from the Only Poet on the Professor Watchlist.
I am a Canadian who graduated from Northwestern (MS, 1967; PhD, 1969) , taught at Kansas for three years, had a run of seven years in the Government of Canada, taught at the University of Ottawa for 26 years and am now a professor emeritus, and I also am owner and partner of a consulting company with numerous ties to U.S. people, institutions, enterprises, etc. Am I eligible to become a member of AAUP? (I am a member of the Association of American Geographers and other U.S.-focused organizations). And, as someone who had a secret-level clearance while a grad student, I am intrigued by the notion of being a member of the Professor Watchlist and seeing what unfolds. Am I eligible to be considered for this group or am I precluded because of my Canadianism?
Regarding AAUP membership: you may wish to confirm this with the membership department, but my understanding is that active membership for new members is reserved for full-time or part-time teachers, researchers, or academic professionals at an accredited college or university, and graduate students. You can join as an “associate member” though: https://www.aaup.org/membership/join
Regarding membership on the Professor Watchlist: that is determined entirely by that organization.
Reblogged this on Lili's Dark Tales and commented:
In case you were unaware-
Serious question: would the AAUP take similar testimonials from faculty who have been harassed and targeted by left wing groups like Greenpeace and its affiliate UnKoch My Campus over environmental issues? There are numerous cases of this type, including some that have been encouraged by regulars on this blog.
Just to clarify: I simply collected links that I had come across in recent weeks and posted them here. If you have a collection of similar links to testimonials of individuals who have been targeted by other organizations, you are certainly welcome to compose a guest post on this blog about it.