More 'Tolerance' From Stalinist Universities

[CherryPanda]

A few weeks ago, Fox News' Todd Starnes reported on a Marquette University student's encounter with his ethics instructor. The professor, Cheryl Abbate, was leading her "Theory of Ethics" class in a discussion about the application of philosophical theories to controversial political issues.

Among the issues listed on the blackboard were gay rights, gun rights and the death penalty. Professor Abbate removed gay rights from the list before the discussion began, with the summary explanation, "We all agree on this."

This puzzled the student, as he certainly did not agree with his instructor's view on the issue and believed it should have been open for discussion along with the other issues. He approached Abbate after class and expressed his opinion that the class should have been allowed to discuss gay rights.

The student recorded his conversation with Abbate without her permission or knowledge. Questions concerning the impropriety of that secret recording aside, the substance of the recorded exchange is illuminating.

The student asked, "Are you saying if I don't agree with gays not being allowed to get married that I'm homophobic?"

The teacher said, "I'm saying it would come off as a homophobic comment in this class."

After further discussion, Abbate said, "You don't have a right in this class (an ethics class) especially to make homophobic comments."

When the student persisted that he is not homophobic and that the professor was restricting his rights and individual liberties, Abbate shot back: "You can have whatever opinions you want, but I will tell you right now, in this class homophobic comments, racist comments, sexist comments will not be tolerated. If you don't like it, you are more than free to drop this class."

The student took her up on the offer and dropped the class. His complaint with university officials went nowhere.

As totalitarian and censorial as Abbate's behavior was, what followed was arguably worse.

Marquette professor John McAdams learned about the incident and expressed his strong disapproval on his blog, Marquette Warrior. McAdams wrote: "Like the rest of academia, Marquette is less and less a real university. And when gay marriage cannot be discussed, certainly not a Catholic university."

Boy, did McAdams step in it. It's not just university students whose speech is suppressed there. On Dec. 16, McAdams received a letter from the dean relieving him of his teaching duties, saying he was under investigation and banned from campus.

To get a flavor of the terse three-paragraph letter, take a look at the first sentence of the final paragraph from Dean Richard C. Holz: "You are to remain off campus during this time, and should you need to come to campus, you are to contact me in writing beforehand to explain the purpose of your visit, to obtain my consent and to make appropriate arrangements for that visit."

In its letter to McAdams, the university did not specify the charges against him, but President Michael R. Lovell wrote a letter to the campus community and said: "This is a matter of official policy, but it's also a matter of our values. Respect is at the heart of our commitment to the Jesuit tradition and Catholic social teaching. ... The university will not tolerate personal attacks or harassment of or by students, faculty and staff. ... We deplore hatred and abuse directed at a member of our community in any format."

There you have it. We have a professor at a university (a Catholic one, no less) — an institution ostensibly dedicated to intellectual and academic inquiry and the free flow of ideas and expression — prohibiting certain relevant views from even being discussed in the classroom, encouraging a dissenting student to drop the class if he doesn't approve of the Stalinist tactics, and casting opposing views as "hatred."

Then we have another professor who expresses his strong dissent of such Stalinist practices and is consequently subjected to worse Stalinist practices in the form of being summarily suspended from his duties and banned from the campus as if he were a serial felon or known terrorist.

Do leftists even pretend to be intellectually open and behaviorally tolerant anymore? If they do, will anyone take them seriously?

More Tolerance From Stalinist Universities CNS News

Where’s the line between free academic spirit that doubts every fact and strives for enhance the understanding of the universe and crossing ethical limits, becoming a hater and a phobic?

Frankly speaking, I’m on the side of the student in this story. No matter what his personal position and attitude to the issue is, it’s only normal to discuss certain things in class. To discuss and to challenge the existing norms is a way to finding truth. Especially in such non-scientific and in many aspects subjective discipline as ethics. And when the professor states that there is only one acceptable point of view on the problem and those who disagree should drop the class, it means the professor does not deserve the position and is totalitarian.

 

[Thunderbird]

Too many universities are interested in indoctrination, not free speech.

How academia's liberal bias is killing social science
A blockbuster new report includes some unsettling revelations

 

[Old Rocks]

More painting of the whole educational system on one incident by a "Conservative". Come on, just state that you do not want our youth to be educated in any way. That would be more honest than this kind of attack on the whole educational structure because of one incident.

 

[Old Rocks]

Education as the 'Conservatives' would have it.

 

[Thunderbird]

More painting of the whole educational system on one incident by a "Conservative". Come on, just state that you do not want our youth to be educated in any way. That would be more honest than this kind of attack on the whole educational structure because of one incident.

If you were interested in education you would be outraged by the PC thought police.

Many violations of individual rights discussed here: Foundation for Individual Rights in Education

 

[Old Rocks]

Ah hell, I am not interested in education. Not at all. I mean I am only working full time as a millwright in a steel mill, and presently at 115 credits toward a degree in Geology at the university. At 71 years of age.

I hear all of you willfully ignorant ranting about education, as I heard your peers doing the same 50 years ago.

 

[Moonglow]

More painting of the whole educational system on one incident by a "Conservative". Come on, just state that you do not want our youth to be educated in any way. That would be more honest than this kind of attack on the whole educational structure because of one incident.

If you were interested in education you would be outraged by the PC thought police.

Many violations of individual rights discussed here: Foundation for Individual Rights in Education

Religion is very PC why don't you bitch about that for a change??

 

[Camp]

Universities have free speech rights. They have the right to teach the way they want. If you don't agree with a University's position on religion, philosophy, etc., go to one you agree with or send your kid to one you agree with.