Metal arch with the name Northwestern University sits atop white stone columns with a backdrop of trees with green and orange leaves.

Why I am Suing Northwestern University—and the United States House of Representatives, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, Attorney General Todd Blanche, and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy

BY STEVEN W. THRASHER On July 20, I filed a lawsuit against Northwestern University and—in his official capacity as Chairman of the US House of Representatives House Committee on Education and the Workforce— Michigan Congressman Tim Walberg.  The suit is also against various actors in the federal government who have pressured Northwestern, including Secretary of Education…

Read the AAUP’s Report on “Extorted Compliance”

BY HANK REICHMAN Today the AAUP released a major new report—”Extorted Compliance: A Threat to Institutional Autonomy, Academic Freedom, and Shared Governance”—prepared by a joint subcommittee of Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure and the Committee on College and University Governance exposing how the Trump administration has extended its pay-to-play approach to governance into higher…

A Big Win for Academic Freedom

BY HANK REICHMAN In a major victory for academic freedom and freedom of expression, on June 19 an arbitrator reversed San Jose State University’s despicable decision to dismiss a tenured full professor for her participation in pro-Palestinian protests, ordering her immediate reinstatement. The case of Professor of Justice Studies Sang Hea Kil has gained international attention. …

Sakharov Prize Recipient: “Our Privilege is an Obligation”

BY HANK REICHMAN The Andrei Sakharov Prize, awarded biennially by the American Physical Society (APS), “recognizes outstanding leadership and achievements of scientists in upholding human rights.”  The Prize is named in honor of the late Soviet physicist and human rights activist Andrei Sakharov and endowed by contributions from friends of Sakharov. In March, the APS…

Digital image of a bird's-eye view of group of people sitting around an oval table

How Academic Freedom Committees Can Help Our Universities Find Their Spines

BY KATIE RAINWATER AND MARTHA SCHOOLMAN University administrations in red states (including Texas and Florida) are increasingly using vague statutes and oral directives to pressure faculty to trade away their academic freedom. In Florida, departments in at least two universities—including Florida International University, where we both teach—recently adopted a censored Introduction to Sociology textbook and…

Must “Neutrality” Mean Silence?

BY HANK REICHMAN Yesterday (February 5), while some 200 people protested outside the campus, two recruiters for the US Border Patrol staffed a booth at a Brigham Young University career fair in Provo, Utah.  Inside the event, The Salt Lake Tribune reports, “students flocked to the ballroom for the chance to talk with recruiters from…

Protestors at Texas A&M University with signs reading "Stop destroying higher education," "Aggies against censorship," and "BTHO censorship"

Fighting for Free Speech at Texas A&M

BY AAUP STAFF Following the extreme and widespread censorship of curriculum and courses at Texas A&M University, both the university’s local chapter (AAUP–Texas A&M) and the national AAUP have started the new year with a rigorous defense of academic freedom in the Lone Star State. Initial outcries centered on the censoring of over 200 undergraduate…