sign the faculty open letter
An Open Letter From Penn Faculty in Support of Free Speech on Campus
November 7, 2022
November 7, 2022
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We faculty at the University of Pennsylvania write this letter to defend the students of Fossil Free Penn and the principle of free expression. At Penn we have all seen their peaceful, 39-day encampment in front of College Hall. Perhaps some of you saw their halftime protest at the Penn-Yale Homecoming football game. They have engaged in these protests in response to the climate catastrophe facing us all. They ask that the Board of Trustees divest from all fossil fuel related investments. They have also argued, with many of us, that Penn should make payments in lieu of taxes to the city of Philadelphia: payments that would support education in this, one of the poorest of America’s large cities. They, like many of us, are appalled by Penn’s role in the displacement of West Philadelphia’s Black and low-income communities. They make a compelling case for the interlinked issues of environmental, social, and racial justice.
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The students’ demands are hardly radical. Penn stands behind all but one of the Ivies (and other great universities) in divesting from fossil fuels. Penn lags behind as well, in contributing payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs), and in our duty to our neighborhood in the city that shelters us. Penn distinguishes itself only in its indifference to its expressed rules and principles, and in its willingness to use force against its students.
The Fossil Free Penn Students who camped on College Green made extraordinary efforts to abide by the provisions of the University of Pennsylvania’s Open Expression Guidelines. They consulted the Guidelines before raising their tents. They announced, on Instagram, and in a sign posted on the encampment, that they were willing to move to accommodate any student group that needed the space for an event. They were never asked to do so, and indeed the student groups they consulted expressed their support for the encampment and in at least one case, offered to make a donation to support it. They consulted with the groundskeepers about the welfare of the grass, were assured that they were doing no harm, and moved their tents regularly to facilitate watering and care for the site. They did no harm to anyone, but, concerned that University officials might (as they later did) accuse them of doing harm to themselves, they established protocols for students in the encampment who became ill.
They went, in short, far beyond the ordinary practices of protestors in their willingness to abide by Penn’s regulations. They consulted Open Expression guidelines and followed them scrupulously. Nevertheless, they were continually harassed by Penn’s central administration, particularly the Office of the Vice Provost for University Life. Their tents were opened. They were awakened and harangued by University officials who shone lights into their tents. These officials threatened and sought to intimidate them.
Instead, the Vice Provost for University Life reported the students–our students–to Penn’s office for Community Standards and Accountability which, despite its recently changed name, holds only [some?] students accountable, and operates not on behalf of the Community, but under the authority and direction of the Provost and the Office of the General Counsel. The investigation that followed has not been consistent with published guidelines, the CSA’s description of its procedures, or past practices. In each one of the “investigative” meetings with the CSA, the students have documented their adherence to the Guidelines on Open Expression.
Fossil Free Penn did not abandon their protests in the face of these intimidating “investigations.” Approximately 75 students came onto the field at the University of Pennsylvania Homecoming football game. Others unfurled banners in the stands. The students also passed out flyers expanding that they did not intend to suspend the game, only a portion of the halftime. These peaceful protests were answered by the University with the forcible removal of 19 of the protestors and their detention by Penn’s private police (the largest in Pennsylvania). The protestors were taken away in handcuffs by armed private police. [Watch for yourself. https://6abc.com/university-of-pennsylvania-upenn-protest-franklin-field-penn-homec
oming-game/12362705/ at .58.] Does the removal of unresisting peaceful protestors require that they be put in handcuffs and taken away under armed guard? Is this how a university should protect open expression? We think not.
The central administration has chosen to pursue disciplinary charges against a subset of these students. This process has been conducted in a manner that is not consistent with the University’s Guidelines on Open Expression. More importantly, it is not consistent with the character of any university that ascribes to First Amendment rights to free speech. Administrators who place the uninterrupted running of a football halftime above a demonstration that draws attention to the University’s neglect of public duty–to our neighbors, to the children of our city, to our common planet–place entertainment above education. They have lost their way.
We believe that the faculty of this University and all universities should retain their commitment to free expression, ethics, and education. The Penn student protesters acted peacefully. None of their actions have posed a threat. All of their actions have been thoughtful and deliberate, consistent with recognized tenets of nonviolent protest. Their actions work to make Penn a more thoughtful, more committed, more ethical, place. The administration has responded with armed force.
We ask you to join us in supporting the right of these students to express their views openly, to educate the community, and to call for action. We hope that you will join with them in pressing for immediate divestment from investments in fossil fuels, for payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs), for the support of the residents of the University City Townhomes, and for more ethical conduct towards a community that has long been under siege.
The Fossil Free Penn Students who camped on College Green made extraordinary efforts to abide by the provisions of the University of Pennsylvania’s Open Expression Guidelines. They consulted the Guidelines before raising their tents. They announced, on Instagram, and in a sign posted on the encampment, that they were willing to move to accommodate any student group that needed the space for an event. They were never asked to do so, and indeed the student groups they consulted expressed their support for the encampment and in at least one case, offered to make a donation to support it. They consulted with the groundskeepers about the welfare of the grass, were assured that they were doing no harm, and moved their tents regularly to facilitate watering and care for the site. They did no harm to anyone, but, concerned that University officials might (as they later did) accuse them of doing harm to themselves, they established protocols for students in the encampment who became ill.
They went, in short, far beyond the ordinary practices of protestors in their willingness to abide by Penn’s regulations. They consulted Open Expression guidelines and followed them scrupulously. Nevertheless, they were continually harassed by Penn’s central administration, particularly the Office of the Vice Provost for University Life. Their tents were opened. They were awakened and harangued by University officials who shone lights into their tents. These officials threatened and sought to intimidate them.
Instead, the Vice Provost for University Life reported the students–our students–to Penn’s office for Community Standards and Accountability which, despite its recently changed name, holds only [some?] students accountable, and operates not on behalf of the Community, but under the authority and direction of the Provost and the Office of the General Counsel. The investigation that followed has not been consistent with published guidelines, the CSA’s description of its procedures, or past practices. In each one of the “investigative” meetings with the CSA, the students have documented their adherence to the Guidelines on Open Expression.
Fossil Free Penn did not abandon their protests in the face of these intimidating “investigations.” Approximately 75 students came onto the field at the University of Pennsylvania Homecoming football game. Others unfurled banners in the stands. The students also passed out flyers expanding that they did not intend to suspend the game, only a portion of the halftime. These peaceful protests were answered by the University with the forcible removal of 19 of the protestors and their detention by Penn’s private police (the largest in Pennsylvania). The protestors were taken away in handcuffs by armed private police. [Watch for yourself. https://6abc.com/university-of-pennsylvania-upenn-protest-franklin-field-penn-homec
oming-game/12362705/ at .58.] Does the removal of unresisting peaceful protestors require that they be put in handcuffs and taken away under armed guard? Is this how a university should protect open expression? We think not.
The central administration has chosen to pursue disciplinary charges against a subset of these students. This process has been conducted in a manner that is not consistent with the University’s Guidelines on Open Expression. More importantly, it is not consistent with the character of any university that ascribes to First Amendment rights to free speech. Administrators who place the uninterrupted running of a football halftime above a demonstration that draws attention to the University’s neglect of public duty–to our neighbors, to the children of our city, to our common planet–place entertainment above education. They have lost their way.
We believe that the faculty of this University and all universities should retain their commitment to free expression, ethics, and education. The Penn student protesters acted peacefully. None of their actions have posed a threat. All of their actions have been thoughtful and deliberate, consistent with recognized tenets of nonviolent protest. Their actions work to make Penn a more thoughtful, more committed, more ethical, place. The administration has responded with armed force.
We ask you to join us in supporting the right of these students to express their views openly, to educate the community, and to call for action. We hope that you will join with them in pressing for immediate divestment from investments in fossil fuels, for payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs), for the support of the residents of the University City Townhomes, and for more ethical conduct towards a community that has long been under siege.
Sincerely,
- Anne Norton, Stacey and Henry Jackson President’s Distinguished Professor of Political Science
- Simon Richter, Class of 1942 Endowed Term Professor, Department of Francophone, Italian and Germanic Studies.
- Gerald Campano, Professor, Graduate School of Education
- Ania Loomba, Catherine Bryson Professor of English
- Bethany Wiggin, Professor, Faculty Director, Penn Program in Environmental Humanities
- Robert Vitalis, Professor, Department of Political Science
- Suvir Kaul, A M Rosenthal Professor of English
- Akira Drake Rodriguez, Assistant Professor, Department of City & Regional Planning at the Weitzman School of Design
- Chi-ming Yang, Professor, Department of English
- Karen Redrobe, Department of History of Art
- Jessa Lingel, Associate Professor, Annenberg School for Communication and GSWS
- Rogers M. Smith, Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Emeritus Professor of Political Science
- Caroline Batten, Assistant Professor, Department of English
- Danaë Metaxa, Raj and Neera Singh Term Assistant Professor of Computer and Information Science (primary), and Annenberg School for Communication (secondary)
- Ezekiel Dixon-Román, Associate Professor, School of Social Policy & Practice (primary), GSE (secondary), Africana Studies (secondary), & Annenberg (secondary)
- Maria Murphy, Associate Director, Center for Research in Feminist, Queer, and Transgender Studies
- Dustyn Roberts, Practice Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering & Applied Mechanics
- Susan L. Lytle, Professor Emerita, Graduate School of Education
- James H. Lytle, Retired Professor of Educational Leadership, Graduate School of Education
- Marcia Ferguson, Theatre Arts Program
- Jennifer Ponce de León, Associate Professor of English
- Herman Beavers, Julie Beren Platt and Marc E. Platt President’s Distinguished Professor of English and Africana Studies
- Andrew Lamas, faculty, Urban Studies (SAS) / NPL Program (SP2)
- Max Cavitch, Associate Professor, Department of English; Co-director, Psychoanalytic Studies Minor
- James English, John Welsh Centennial Professor of English; Faculty Director, Price Lab
- Franca Trubiano, Associate Professor, Weitzman School of Design
- Nancy J. Hirschmann, Geraldine R. Segal Professor in American Social Thought, Prof. of Political Science and GSWS
- Amy C. Offner, Associate Professor of History, SAS
- Luis Moreno-Caballud, Associate Professor, Spanish and Portuguese Department
- Nikhil Anand, Associate Professor of Anthropology, SAS
- Heather Love, Professor, Department of English, SAS
- Michael G. Hanchard, Professor, Africana Studies
- Michael Nairn, Faculty, Urban Studies Program (SAS)
- Yue Hou, The Janice and Julian Bers Assistant Professor in the Social Sciences, Department of Political Science
- Warren Breckman, Sheldon and Lucy Hackney Professor, Department of History
- Teemu Ruskola, Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations & Professor of Law
- Beans Velocci, Assistant Professor, History and Sociology of Science & GSWS
- Marie Gottschalk, Edmund J. Kahn Distinguished Professor of Political Science
- Julia Lynch, Professor of Political Science
- Jorge Téllez, Associate Professor, Dept. of Spanish and Portuguese
- Sarah J. Jackson, Presidential Associate Professor, Annenberg School for Communication
- Julia Alekseyeva, Assistant Professor of English, SAS
- Betsy Rymes, Professor, GSE
- Anne Berg, Assistant Professor of History, SAS
- Dagmawi Woubshet, Ahuja Family Presidential Associate Professor of English, SAS
- Valerie Ross, Marks Family Senior Director, Center for Excellence in Writing
- Al Filreis, Professor, Department of English, SAS
- Eva Del Soldato, Associate Professor, FIGS, SAS
- Amy Stornaiuolo, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
- Amy Hillier, Associate Professor, School of Social Policy & Practice
- Emily Steinlight, Associate Professor of English, SAS
- Rupa Pillai, Senior Lecturer, Asian American Studies, SAS
- Samuel Martin, Lecturer, FIGS, SAS
- Ian Fleishman, Associate Professor of Cinema & Media Studies and FIGS, SAS
- Elizabeth Collins, Lecturer, FIGS, SAS
- Rand Quinn, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Education
- Mark Liberman, Professor, Department of Lingusitics, SAS
- David Kazanjian, Professor of English, SAS
- Sebastián Gil-Riaño, Assistant Professor, History and Sociology of Science
- Robert P. Fairbanks II, Lecturer and Fellow, Urban Studies
- Stacy Kastner, Director of the Marks Family Writing Center, Center for Excellence in Writing, SAS
- Zachary Lesser, Edward W. Kane Professor of English
- Rahul Mukherjee, Associate Professor, English and CIMS, SAS
- Melissa Jensen, Lecturer, English/GSWS, SAS
- Charles Bernstein, Donald T. Regan Pressor, Emeritus, English and Comparative Literature
- Jean-Christophe Cloutier, English and Comparative Literature
- Jamal J Elias, Walter H Annenberg Professor of the Humanities and Professor of Religious Studies
- Susanna B. Berkouwer, Assistant Professor of Business Economics and Public Policy, Wharton
- Teresa Giménez, Lecturer, Department of Spanish and Portuguese, College of Arts and Sciences
- Michelle Taransky, Lecturer, Critical Writing and Creative Writing, SAS
- Jean-Michel Rabaté, Professor of English
- David L. Eng, Richard L. Fisher Professor of English, SAS
- Sharon Hayes, Professor, Department of Fine Arts, Weitzman School of Design
- Joseph E. Lowry, Associate Professor, NELC
- Barbie Zelizer, Raymond Williams Professor of Communication, Annenberg School for Communication
- Huda Fakhreddine, Associate Professor, NELC, SAS
- Lidia León-Blázquez, Lecturer, Department of Spanish & Portuguese (Arts & Sciences)
- Andi Johnson, Senior Lecturer, History & Sociology of Science Department, SAS
- Fariha Khan, Co-Director of ASAM, SAS
- Siarhei Biareishyk, Lecturer, FIGS/REES/Comparative Literature, SAS
- Mónica Velasco-González, Lecturer, Department of Spanish & Portuguese (Arts & Sciences)
- Josephine Park, Professor of English and Asian American Studies, SAS
- Rob Buscher, Lecturer, Asian American Studies Program, SAS
- Eva Recio-González, Lecturer, The Lauder Institute.
- Ashley Brock, Assistant Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, SAS
- Deborah A. Thomas, R. Jean Brownlee Professor of Anthropology
- Nancy Bentley, Donald T. Regan Professor of English
- Adriana Petryna, Professor of Anthropology, SAS
- Moira Alvarez, Lecturer, The Lauder Institute
- Nick Joseph, Lecturer, Critical Writing, SAS
- Victor Pickard, C. Edwin Baker Professor, Annenberg School for Communication
- Janine Remillard, Professor, Graduate School of Education
- Marcy Norton, Associate Professor of History, SAS
- Ramah McKay, Associate Professor, History and Sociology of Science
- Ann Kuttner, Assoc. Prof., History of Art
- Rafael Khachaturian, Lecturer, Critical Writing, SAS
- Paul K. Saint-Amour, Walter H. and Leonore C. Annenberg Professor in the Humanities, SAS
Fossil Free Penn seeks to include all members of the Penn community in this campaign.
If you are faculty or (non-faculty) staff and would like to be involved, please email [email protected].
