John Inazu teaches law at Washington University in St. Louis. He is the author of Confident Pluralism: Surviving and Thriving Through Deep Difference (University of Chicago Press, 2016) and (with Tim Keller) Uncommon Ground: Living Faithfully in a World of Difference (Nelson Books, 2020). This morning he published a Twitter thread on the debate over “wokeness” at Grove City College. (Read our commentary on this debate here).
Here is the thread:
Heck, even Liberty University sometimes brings in controversial speakers.
Warren Throckmorton, a psychology professor at Grove City, responds to Inazu:
These changes are all about the Evangelical Donor Class asserting the power of their checkbooks and ordering college administrators to throttle uncomfortable topics. We see this all over the country, from politically-connected board of regents interfering in governance or budgetary matters at public universities to presidents of private colleges, under financial pressure and in hock to wealthy benefactors, eliminating burrs under their donors’ saddles. We also see well-connected alumni asserting their power to keep things just as they were fifty years ago when they attended, whether they be potential admission of women (in my case) or ROTC on campus, racial awareness, LGBTQ acceptance or any other broad social change. Colleges are best advised to build a moat between donors or alumni and any governance matters whatsover and be willing to say “no” when cuts in donations are threatened. They will be all the better if they do.
This is true. Sadly, many members of these boards are chosen for either their money or business experience. Few board members understand the humanities. They are vested in the survival of the institution–keeping the doors open.