AFA Statement on Penn’s Suspension of Amy Wax
Penn’s punishment of Wax is a “manifest betrayal of its own commitment to its faculty”
PRINCETON, NJ – The Academic Freedom Alliance today issued a statement regarding the University of Pennsylvania’s decision to suspend Professor Amy Wax. The AFA has been active in advocating for Wax throughout her disciplinary proceedings, including sending letters to Penn in January 2022, July 2022, and May 2024.
The AFA’s Statement:
“From the outset of Penn’s attempt to punish Professor Amy Wax for exercising her academic freedom as a law professor and extramural speech as a private citizen, the AFA has defended her right to be free from disciplinary action for her teaching and personal opinions. Given Penn’s recent claim to uphold institutional neutrality even as the university announces its intention to punish Wax as a professor and in the public eye, the AFA insists that doing so contradicts Penn’s claim to support ‘the free and unencumbered creation and expression of ideas by individuals.’ Wax’s punishment also undermines Penn’s credibility when it declares that it is ‘not the role of the institution to render opinions—doing so risks suppressing the creativity and academic freedom of our faculty and students.’ (See ‘The Words That Guide Us’ and ‘Upholding Academic Independence.’)
“Beginning in January 2022 and continuing through May 2024, the AFA has publicly maintained that no clear evidence existed to justify the harsh punishment sought by former Law School Dean Ted Ruger and now finally carried out by Interim Penn President J. Larry Jameson. Dean Ruger had conceded that ‘Wax makes these statements as a faculty member with tenure, a status that has done, and continues to do, important work in protecting the voices of scholars on a range of controversial topics.’ He added, ‘The same academic freedom principles that permit current scholars to engage in critical and overdue analysis of this nation’s historical and structural discrimination – despite zealous efforts to censor such speech by some – also apply to faculty like Wax who voice xenophobic and white supremacist views.’
“We remind Penn that their ‘Guidelines on Open Expression’ state, ‘The freedom to experiment, to present and examine alternative data and theories; the freedom to hear, express, and debate various views; and the freedom to voice criticism of existing practices and values are fundamental rights that must be upheld and practiced by the University in a free society.’ The related ‘Interpretive Guidelines’ explain that the Guidelines ‘protect members of the entire University community against official reprisals for hosting controversial speakers and events.’
“For Penn to punish Prof. Wax for inviting a controversial speaker to her ‘Conservative and Political Legal Thought’ class and for expressing her personal political views on matters of academic and public dispute is a manifest betrayal of its own commitment to its faculty that ‘when speaking or writing as an individual, the teacher should be free from institutional censorship or discipline.’ It is decidedly not ‘quieting Penn’s institutional voice’ so that ‘the expertise of our faculty will be amplified’ when it employs punitive sanctions on Prof. Wax. It chills professorial speech and diminishes the diversity of opinions essential to public discussion of social and political issues. (See Article 11 of the Statutes of the Trustees and ‘Upholding Academic Independence’).
“We believe that Penn and all institutions of higher learning must refrain from selective protection of academic freedom. To punish faculty speech based on an unpopular viewpoint will continue to erode the public’s trust in institutions of higher education.
“Penn professes, ‘It is not the role of the institution to render opinions—doing so risks suppressing the creativity and academic freedom of our faculty and students.’ To remain ‘a trusted source of truth,’ as it boldly concludes in its statement on ‘Upholding Academic Independence,’ Penn must remove all doubt that it plays favorites when it comes to protecting academic freedom and extramural speech. The AFA calls on Interim Penn President J. Larry Jameson to reconsider his decision to impose the harsh sanctions recommended by the Penn Hearing Board, rescind Provost John L. Jackson, Jr.’s public letter of reprimand, and demonstrate that Penn intends to earn back the respect it has lost over the past few years.”