Last fall, Yale sent out an email which encouraged students to show sensitivity in their choice of Halloween costumes. Erika Christakis, Associate Master of Silliman College responded to the email by reminding students of the importance of free expression. Her husband Nicholas Christakis, Master of Silliman College, defended his wife’s email.
My colleague Fuzzy Slippers covered the story at the time.
Angry Yale students confronted Nicholas Christakis on campus and screamed at him, demanding that Yale must make them feel comfortable and safe on campus.
Here’s a video of the confrontation in case you haven’t seen it or forgot how outrageous it was. This now has over 1.2 million views and was overwhelmingly downvoted by the YouTube community:
In a development which is sure to please the pathetic safe spacers at Yale, Nicholas and Erika Christakis have now resigned from their positions at the school.
Conor Friedersdorf reports at The Atlantic:
The Perils of Writing a Provocative Email at YaleLast fall, student protesters at Yale University demanded that Professor Nicholas Christakis, an academic star who has successfully mentored Ivy League undergraduates for years, step down from his position as faculty-in-residence at Silliman College, along with his wife, Erika Christakis, who shared in the job’s duties.The protesters had taken offense at an email sent by Erika Christakis.Dogged by the controversy for months, the couple finally resigned their posts Wednesday. Because the student protests against them were prompted by intellectual speech bearing directly on Erika Christakis’s area of academic expertise, the outcome will prompt other educators at Yale to reflect on their own positions and what they might do or say to trigger or avoid calls for their own resignations. If they feel less inclined toward intellectual engagement at Yale, I wouldn’t blame them.Nicholas Christakis will continue on as a tenured Yale faculty member. Erika Christakis, who gave up teaching at Yale last semester, recently published a book, The Importance of Being Little: What Preschoolers Really Need From Grownups.She has no future classes scheduled.
Hat tip to Oren Kessler:
Featured image via YouTube.
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