Stanford University Hosting ‘Academic Freedom Conference’ to Promote Free Speech
“the two-day event has already prompted controversy and ad hominem attacks”
This sort of thing should be happening on college campuses across the country.
The College Fix reports:
‘Academic Freedom Conference’ at Stanford to unite big-name conservatives and liberals for free speech
An “Academic Freedom Conference” slated for early November at Stanford University will feature venerable scholars from both the left and right who have at least one thing in common — the desire to see freedom of thought and expression flourish at their institutions of higher learning.
The lineup of speakers includes well-known scholars who are either conservative, centrist, liberal or libertarian, but who have established themselves as leading voices against an orthodoxy strangling free speech and dissent on campuses.
The goal of the conference, hosted at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, is to buoy its invitation-only audience of faculty members from across the nation to head back to their campuses ready to stand up for academic freedom, open inquiry and freedom of speech.
With that, the two-day event has already prompted controversy and ad hominem attacks, as more than 30 Stanford professors from a variety of fields asked the university “to distance itself from the conference,” Inside Higher Ed reported Tuesday.
“The organizers have in fact gone out of their way to create a hermetically-sealed event, safe from any and all meaningful debate, filled with self-affirmation and self-congratulation, an event where racism is given shelter and immunity,” the statement reportedly said.
Asked if the furor over the conference is an attempt to get it canceled, UT Austin finance Professor Richard Lowery said it may be.
“I’m reasonably certain that they would very much like the conference to not take place, though it is of course possible they have other motives. But, in general, the philosophy of the campus left is that dissenting ideas should not be allowed to be expressed on campus,” said Lowery, who is scheduled to speak on practical solutions to attain academic freedom.
Organizers also recently decided to livestream the event to quell criticisms and concerns.
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Comments
Finally, a university with enough chutzpah to stand against the woke & cupcakes and fight for freedom of speech – ALL speech. Of course, we’ll see what happens over the next days as things get closer & more heated. I pray that they are willing to stand firm as this is conversation that is needed now.
Looks like an interesting list of speakers. I do hope the sponsor(s) are able to get the conference off the ground without the usual chattering mob exercising their violent mob veto.