Spotlight

The Academic Freedom Alliance is proud to join other notable groups in the movement to defend academic freedom on campus. Other organizations who are active in protecting and advancing academic freedom include:

MIT Free Speech Alliance

The MIT Free Speech Alliance (MFSA) was founded by a group of MIT Alumni in late 2021 following the cancellation of a scientific lecture by University of Chicago professor Dorian Abbot, after Abbot’s unrelated writings on campus diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives prompted criticism. The MFSA hopes to build positively on the aftermath of this controversy by supporting free expression-oriented programming at MIT and working proactively with the administration to foster a stronger culture of free expression. MFSA also actively supports the adoption of speech-protective policies and measures at MIT, and supported the passage of the Statement on Freedom of Expression and Academic Freedom adopted by the MIT faculty in December 2022.

The Classical Liberalism Initiative of the Stanford Graduate School of Business

Stanford’s Classical Liberalism Initiative is devoted to the study of classical liberal institutions and the interactions among individuals, corporations, markets, government, and civic institutions in a free society. CLI seeks to foster an open intellectual environment where all arguments and ideas are critically examined. It does so, in part, through hosting Classical Liberalism Seminars featuring notable voices from across academia and public life. It also hosted an Academic Freedom Conference in 2022 that featured faculty across the country.

FIRE has been central to the defense of campus free speech since its inception in 1999. It educates students and faculty about the importance of their First Amendment rights, undertakes a range of research and advocacy efforts, and provides legal and financial assistance in support of campus speech. Originally founded as the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, FIRE rebranded and expanded its mission in 2022 to include protecting free speech and free thought off campus as well.

Heterodox Academy is a nonpartisan, nonprofit member organization of 5,400+ university faculty, staff, and students committed to improving research and education by promoting viewpoint diversity, open inquiry, and constructive disagreement. Heterodox Academy was founded in 2015 by Jonathan Haidt and Nicholas Rosenkranz (who later became AFA founding members), along with Chris Martin, in reaction to their observations about the negative impact a lack of ideological diversity has had on the quality of research within their disciplines.

The Cornell Free Speech Alliance