The Death of Free Speech: Uber PC'ism-A further look

[michigancat]

Also, I thought it was interesting that at some school mentioned in the Atlantic piece a professor published a memo or something about trigger warnings or something and was mushed by his/her fellow professors

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

Liberal KU Communications professor attempt an honest dialogue about race; is eaten by her own; now on administrative leave pending investigation by something called the Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access. That's got a nice Orwellian ring to it.

http://m.ljworld.com/news/2015/nov/20/ku-communications-prof-who-used-n-word-class-discu/?templates=mobile

Sara Shepherd
Story by Sara Shepherd
Friday, November 20, 2015
A Kansas University professor who used the n-word during a class discussion about race is on leave while the university investigates a discrimination complaint against her.

Andrea Quenette, assistant professor of communication studies, said she was notified Friday morning that five individuals, whose names she does not know, filed a discrimination complaint against her with KU’s Office of Institutional Opportunity and Access. She said her supervisors agreed to her request for a leave of absence with pay until the investigation concludes.

The formal complaint follows more than a week of public criticism perpetuated by graduate students in the communications department. Students have posted messages to Twitter with the hashtag #FireAndreaQuenette, shared a lengthy letter online and complained about her in a Student Senate meeting Wednesday night.

Sparking their outrage was Quenette’s use of the n-word and statements about retention rates at KU and the concept of systematic racism during her Communications Studies 930 class — focused on best practices for graduate students who teach undergraduate classes — on Nov. 12, the morning after KU’s heated university-wide town hall forum on race.

Quenette, who is 33 and has been teaching at KU for two years, said she believes academic freedom protects her comments and that they were not discriminatory.

“I didn’t intend to offend anyone, I didn’t intend to hurt anyone. I didn’t direct my words at any individual or group of people,” she told the Journal-World tearfully in a phone interview Friday.

“It was an open conversation about a serious issue that is affecting our campus, and it will affect our teachers. In that regard, I consider it within my purview ... to talk about those issues.”

The graduate students saw it differently.

“It was outright racism,” said Amy Schumacher, a first-year Ph.D. student who was in the class, which she said is composed of nine white students and one black student. “I don’t think that it was an open dialogue — she wasn’t receptive to hearing any other ideas.”

Schumacher said she believes Quenette “actively violated policies” during the discussion, hurt students’ feelings — including the one black student, who left “devastated” — and has a previous history of being unsympathetic to students.

Class discussion in dispute
Diversity in the classroom was, coincidentally, on the syllabus for Quenette’s Nov. 12 class.

Inspired by the previous night’s forum, Quenette said, a student asked how they could talk about race issues in their own classes, and the conversation naturally shifted to how the university should address problems.

“I tried to preface everything I said with, ‘I don’t experience racial discrimination so it’s hard for me to understand the challenges that other people face, because I don’t often see those,’” said Quenette, who is white. [Man, she even confessed her WHITE PRIVILEGE but that wasn't enough. Sad.]

She said she pointed out that racist incidents on other campuses, including the University of Missouri in Columbia, have been very visible, and she used the n-word when comparing KU to them.

“I haven’t seen those things happen, I haven’t seen that word spray-painted on our campus, I haven’t seen students physically assaulted,” Quenette said.

Quenette said she could have apologized “in the moment” if anyone had responded but that no one did, and the discussion continued.

On the subject of low graduation rates for black students and whether institutionalized racism is to blame — students in class said it was — Quenette said students who don’t graduate do so for a number of reasons, and from what she’s seen at KU it’s often academic performance. Quenette said she’s on a College of Liberal Arts and Sciences committee studying retaining and supporting students, and that “all students” who come to KU with low academic preparedness are at risk.

She acknowledged there was “confusion” during that conversation and that it ended “abruptly” when class was over.

Schumacher, who is also white, described Quenette’s interactions during the conversation as “disparaging” and “deeply disturbing.”

“They articulated not only her lack of awareness of racial discrimination and violence on this campus and elsewhere but an active denial of institutional, structural and individual racism,” Schumacher wrote in the letter signed by the students in the class, plus one other graduate student. “This denial perpetuates racism in and of itself.”

Schumacher said students “had no words” and most “just shut down” after Quenette’s use of the n-word in class.

The next class
Graduate students gathered with other communications faculty and administrators for a town hall of their own on Monday, to which Quenette was asked not to come.

At the next class meeting, on Tuesday, the graduate students demanded that Quenette read aloud their letter, “An Open Letter Calling for the Termination of Dr. Andrea Quenette for Racial Discrimination.” [Wow, it's just like Animal Farm. Can't make this crap up!]

Quenette said she began reading the letter but stopped partway through, stating that there were legal implications and that she would not read any more.

She then listened as some students read personal statements aloud.

“I feel terrible, upset and sad that I had hurt their feelings and made them feel uncomfortable, because I do care about them as people,” Quenette said. “I felt frustrated by some of the things written in the letter that I don’t remember happening like they described.”

Quenette had prepared a statement of her own to clarify her comments and apologize.

But she said several students said they didn’t want to hear her apology.

“Someone said, ‘No, this is over,’ and they all got up and left,” Quenette said.

Schumacher said students insisted Quenette read their letter aloud “to make sure that she got it.”

She described Quenette as calloused, dismissive and scoffing despite “pain” visible on students’ faces. Schumacher said it became clear that Quenette still was not respecting the students, so they told her they did not want to hear her statement and left.

We need a reap/sow emoticon.

[michigancat]

She's a liberal?

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

She's a liberal?

I think that's a fair assumption with about a 97% chance of accuracy.

[michigancat]

hahaha Joe Davis left a comment

[sonofdaxjones]

haha   

[star seed 7]

Who is Joe Davis?

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

So this move by the libtards to erase history and delete all racists and slave holders from the Democrat party - does that apply to Margaret Sanger?

I'm just not up to speed on the latest hierarchy. I would have said the holy right and prerogative to kill babies trumps all other considerations, including racism, but racism really seems to be moving to the forefront.

[wetwillie]

her downfall was spending 6 years at NDSU.  She never stood a chance of being a well adjusted member of society.

[Fake Sugar Dick (WARNING, NOT THE REAL SUGAR DICK!)]

It is pretty awesome how the snake appears to be eating its tail

This is a whole new kind of delusion and empowerment, and it's so pathetic you can't help but feel a little sorry for these weirdos.

[renocat]

What the hell happens to these kids in the real cruel world?  Are we going to burn books next?   I bet these sensitive children do not realive what can be found in books in the KU library.

[chum1]

 

http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/florida-teacher-starts-day-complimenting-students/story?id=35259600

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

http://abcnews.go.com/Lifestyle/florida-teacher-starts-day-complimenting-students/story?id=35259600

Those college kids look really young. I must be getting old.

[john "teach me how to" dougie]

http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2015/11/the-revenge-of-the-coddled-an-interview-with-jonathan-haidt

I found this provocative. Was posted by my bro-in-law who is a college professor on the west coast and is a liberal.

interesting piece.  thanks for posting it.

OK, I finally read it. I thought it was interesting, but puzzling that the interviewee talks about this overwhelming culture of fear and PC-ness, yet no one pushed back on his article and there's no real data that this is a problem. Which seems kind of ironic since the complaining is coming from someone with a PhD.

the coddled youth don't read, michigancat.  obviously, people of reading age would agree with the thesis


while most of the article the interviewee co-wrote focuses on series of anecdotes, there is a little bit of data presented as well.

I reread the original article. The little data they presented made their broad claims seem insignificant. They really seem like they're overreacting to microaggression or something. No one is actually losing their job over this (other than the "Notre Dame vs. The Klan" guy). Professors are just forced to think about what they say a bit more and these two guys had a major forum to whine about it for a couple thousand words.

Didn't the UMo president lose his job?

[michigancat]

http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2015/11/the-revenge-of-the-coddled-an-interview-with-jonathan-haidt

I found this provocative. Was posted by my bro-in-law who is a college professor on the west coast and is a liberal.

interesting piece.  thanks for posting it.

OK, I finally read it. I thought it was interesting, but puzzling that the interviewee talks about this overwhelming culture of fear and PC-ness, yet no one pushed back on his article and there's no real data that this is a problem. Which seems kind of ironic since the complaining is coming from someone with a PhD.

the coddled youth don't read, michigancat.  obviously, people of reading age would agree with the thesis


while most of the article the interviewee co-wrote focuses on series of anecdotes, there is a little bit of data presented as well.

I reread the original article. The little data they presented made their broad claims seem insignificant. They really seem like they're overreacting to microaggression or something. No one is actually losing their job over this (other than the "Notre Dame vs. The Klan" guy). Professors are just forced to think about what they say a bit more and these two guys had a major forum to whine about it for a couple thousand words.

Didn't the UMo president lose his job?

He deserved it.

[sys]

He deserved it.

based on what?

[michigancat]

He deserved it.

based on what?

 His football coach was willing to help his team go on strike to get him fired. That's almost unprecedentedly poor management.

[sys]

His football coach was willing to help his team go on strike to get him fired. That's almost unprecedentedly poor management.

oh, a football coach.  say no more.

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

Here's a fun roundup of campus insanity. I hadn't heard of many of these.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/higher-education-brought-low/2015/11/25/a79f118e-92d6-11e5-b5e4-279b4501e8a6_story.html

[stunted]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/11/23/university-yoga-class-canceled-because-of-oppression-cultural-genocide/

lol wat

[sys]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/11/23/university-yoga-class-canceled-because-of-oppression-cultural-genocide/

lol wat

that's pretty funny.

[K-S-U-Wildcats!]

Ha ha. Would that every university handled their coddled babies like this. http://www.okwu.edu/blog/2015/11/this-is-not-a-day-care-its-a-university/

[everyone shut up]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/11/23/university-yoga-class-canceled-because-of-oppression-cultural-genocide/

lol wat

“We’re trying to establish to the world that it’s ours.”

how inclusive of them. imagine how well it would work out if MLB said the same thing and kicked out anyone that wasnt a white american.

[sonofdaxjones]

a world that is ours . . . and not anyone else's #divesity #openmind

[stunted]

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/dec/01/fat-shaming-cards-tube-overweight-haters-ltd-police



disgusting. police investigating a group that is only looking out for the health of others. cigarette-shaming is working. fat-shaming is the way to go. plus it is easy to not eat, unless excuses are your thing.

Knox described the man who handed over the card as a “hipster.. smartly, trendily dressed” with a beard.

stud