Dr. No: Northwestern’s Unwise Rebuke of Epstein’s Op-Ed | RealClearPolitics
Is there a problem with Epstein s column, then? Hordes of bloggers and Internet commenters certainly think so. Fine. Let them say their piece, preferably using actual arguments instead of name-calling. Let Epstein defend his views, along with others who liked his column. That s what freedom of speech means.
The real problem here is not with Jill Biden s title or the back-and-forth over Epstein s essay. The real problem here is that Northwestern University decided to issue an official condemnation. The university administration labeled Epstein s view misogynistic. The English Department added its own statement. It, too, rejects [Epstein s] opinion.
These official statements show how clueless Northwestern s senior academic administrators are about what academic freedom means and how to protect it. The best way to encourage students and faculty to express their views to engage each other in a free marketplace of ideas is for administrators to remain silent on nearly all political issues. The only exceptions are policy questions that bear directly on the university as an institution, such federal loans for students.