Crack-downs on academic freedom can be understood as backlashes, while certain arguments for academic freedom can be understood as reactions to perceived offence. After a theoretical introduction to the concepts of ‘backlash’ and ‘offence’, the seminar will split into groups. Each group will role-play a case of contested academic freedom, reflecting on and analysing how backlash and offence played a role. The idea is that understanding the dynamics and discourses around these phenomena helps us more fully comprehend contestations around academic freedom in the context of the culture wars.
Speakers:
Gavin Stevenson – Fellow in Sociology, Murray Edwards College, University of Cambridge
About this network
Academic freedom is central to the research and education conditions of the university, and yet, globally, it has been in significant decline since 2013 (Lott 2023). This research network will build a community of scholars interested in understanding and advocating for the protection of our academic freedoms. It will also allow space for us to collectively define the concepts and practices of academic freedoms based on our experiences as scholars, in counterpoint to externally-derived definitions that have taken dominance in the public sphere, such as that of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023.
For details about this network, please visit: https://www.crassh.cam.ac.uk/research/networks/academic-freedoms/