A question to fellow academics about freedom of expression

Dear colleagues,

I read with interest some of the academic discussions on some listserv and some of the posts that are on social media. I can't help but notice that many (rather superficial) topics are a lot more popular than a fundamental and current issue we should value and defend: freedom of speech.

Freedom of speech has been under attack for years and is slowly eroding in front of our eyes (e.g., the current situation in US schools or the Salman Rushdie stabbing ). Look around and you will see numerous examples in the news media, in politics, and of course in your respective universities! A few people are reacting and warning us (e.g., this recent article in the?Washington Post , or this?freespeechchampion.com?article ). I understand that some of you are working in countries where freedom is very limited, or that you come from such countries and fear punishment for what you support and express (this happened to this Ph.D. student ). Others may feel unsafe and don't speak up because you are nontenured and fear for your future... But this leaves many silent academics who should be defending freedom of expression and freedom of speech.

Remember that freedom of expression is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 19). When freedom of expression is limited or violated and we say nothing, we contribute to and we are complicit to this situation... And this leads to having metal detectors and police protection in universities when a "controversial" speaker is invited. It also results in professors being suspended or sacked. It may also contribute to your paper being rejected by an editor or reviewers because of the ideas you express. Of course, as we protect free speech, we must also make sure to prevent hate speech and discrimination (often illegal) in our classrooms and campuses.

I believe, like many others, that academic freedom is the foundational value of higher education?(I just read?this post ?this morning).?Yet, we may hesitate to recommend a book or an article to read, we may refuse to address controversial topics in the classroom because "it might offend someone" (people are so easily offended nowadays) and we are afraid of the repercussions, etc.... But it is clearly a disservice to the academy and to our students to not defend and to not practice freedom of speech.?That freedom is essential to confront students' alternative conceptions and to foster critical research.

So what do you value as academics??

P.S. I leave you with this quote from Jacqueline de Romilly, a French scholar: ? Apprendre à penser, à réfléchir, à être précis, à peser les termes de son discours (…), c’est être capable de dialoguer, c’est le seul moyen d’endiguer la violence effrayante qui monte autour de nous. La parole est le rempart contre la bestialité ?... which I would translate as:?

"To learn how to think, to reflect, to be precise, to weigh the terms of one's argument... is to be able to dialog; it is the only way to curb the frightening violence rising around us. Speech is the stronghold against bestiality."