Table of Contents
Greg: Brandeis’ Censorship Problem Didn’t Begin with Hirsi Ali
Last week, Brandeis University reversed its decision to grant an honorary degree to women’s rights activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali because of her criticism of Islam. It is unfortunate that Brandeis’ class of 2014 was denied the opportunity to hear Hirsi Ali speak at commencement, but the controversy is a symptom of a much deeper problem—both at Brandeis and across the country. FIRE President Greg Lukianoff puts the incident in context in an article for The Huffington Post today with a reminder of Brandeis’ worrying past on free speech issues and of what’s at stake for the future.
Recent Articles
FIRE’s award-winning Newsdesk covers the free speech news you need to stay informed.
Purdue fails its own test on institutional neutrality
Purdue claimed neutrality — until a student paper challenged it. But pressuring the paper to change its name is not neutrality. It’s censorship.
Extortion in plain sight
A baseless lawsuit, FCC strong-arming, an $8 billion merger — and free speech hanging in the balance. Robert Corn-Revere exposes the political pressure campaign that forced CBS to settle a case that never should’ve been filed.
Jailed for basic journalism, Texas reporter takes free speech fight to Supreme Court
When local officials tried to turn journalism into a crime, Priscilla Villarreal refused to back down. Arrested for asking questions, now with FIRE at her side, she’s taking her fight all the way to the Supreme Court.
Speech is not a crime — even if it complicates ICE’s job
Aaron Terr explains why alerting others to law enforcement activity, or reporting on it, is protected by the First Amendment.