Thread by @AAUP

A new AAUP report published today concludes the admin of @HamlineU violated the #academicfreedom of Professor Erika López Prater after a student complaint on the presentation of images of the Prophet Muhammad during an online art history class.
twincities.com/2023/05/22/rep…
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The AAUP’s committee of inquiry found that Professor López Prater’s decision to display the historical images was not only justifiable & appropriate on both scholarly & pedagogical grounds but also protected by #academicfreedom.

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2 weeks prior to the class meeting in question, the department chair asked Professor López Prater about teaching a course in the spring '23 semester, writing “My students in your class have said nothing but wonderful things, so we would really love to have you back..."

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2 weeks after the class meeting & subsequent complaint, the chair wrote her stating, “As a department we need to make a spring semester change & will no longer be able to offer the contemporary art history class online as we had previously discussed.”

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In November 2022, Hamline’s vice president for inclusive excellence emailed all university employees calling Professor López Prater’s presentation of the images “undeniably inconsiderate, disrespectful, & Islamophobic.”

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4 days later, in an interview w/ the student newspaper, he stated, “In [view] of this incident, it was decided it was best that this faculty member was no longer part of the @HamlineU community.” At that time, Professor López Prater was still teaching.

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The AAUP’s report states that circumstantial evidence strongly suggests that Hamline admin rescinded the informal offer to assign Professor López Prater another art history course in spring 2023 solely because she had displayed the images, thus violating her #academicfreedom.

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The AAUP report concludes that neither admin nor López Prater’s department chair provided a legitimate academic rationale for declining to offer her any further teaching assignments. Admin also failed to initiate any formal or substantial investigation of the complaint.

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The AAUP recommends that the BOT formally endorse the principles articulated in the Hamline faculty resolution. We continue to closely monitor developments at Hamline - among the most welcome of which would be a renewed offer of teaching appointment to Professor López Prater.
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The AAUP's full report on Academic Freedom and Tenure @HamlineU can be found here:

aaup.org/report/academi…

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