Defending Academic Freedom at the University of Minnesota - October 20, 2023

The academic freedom to explore, analyze, and debate global events is of paramount importance to higher education. Given the ongoing atrocities in Israel and Gaza, the AAUP chapter of the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities reminds all university members, especially those in administration, that University policy calls for the academic freedom and related free speech rights of students, faculty, and staff to be respected. This is especially important in a moment when some university members are placed in vulnerable positions due to their ethnic background, national or religious identity, and/or political commitments and affiliations. All university members—including faculty without tenure protections—have the right to express their positions on the events in Israel and Gaza; to stage public demonstrations, protests, and presentations; and to author public statements and publications. The University administration has a responsibility to ensure that those expressing their views can do so free from violence, intimidation, censorship, and other forms of retaliation. As officers of the AAUP chapter at the university, it is our job to investigate potential breaches of academic freedom and we will be doing so diligently. We encourage anyone who believes that they have been targeted to reach out to our chapter via email at [email protected].

Sincerely,
Sumanth Gopinath, President, AAUP-UMTC
Heather Holcombe, Vice President, AAUP-UMTC
Teri Caraway, Treasurer, AAUP-UMTC
Gopalan Nadathur, Secretary, AAUP-UMTC
Nathaniel Mills, Member-at-Large, AAUP-UMTC
Ruth Shaw, Member-at-Large, AAUP-UMTC