Saturday, October 17, 2020
Pitt Law Adjunct Prof Resigns After Using N-Word In Class On Offensive Speech
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Pitt Law School Adjunct Professor Resigns After Using a Racial Slur in Class:
Another professor on a city campus, this time at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, is no longer in his position after uttering a racial slur in class, the second such incident in five weeks.
Officials at Pitt did not identify the adjunct professor or the class. But an email from law school administrators, including Law Dean Amy Wildermuth, sent Wednesday said the incident was followed by the professor’s announcement to students that he would resign.
“Early Tuesday morning, we learned that an adjunct professor at the law school used an offensive racial epithet (specifically, the “n word”) in the course of an academic class discussion on a particular case involving offensive language,” the email stated. “The instructor apologized and expressed his deep regret to the class, and informed the class at 1 p.m. today that he was resigning immediately from teaching at Pitt Law.
“We condemn the use of this word, and we believe that saying this word and words like it, even in an academic context, is deeply hurtful,” the noted added.
https://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2020/10/pitt-law-adjunct-prof-resigns-after-using-n-word-in-class.html
Comments
In a sane world, this classroom speech would be recognized as protected by academic freedom and as reasonably related to a pedagogical purpose. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that an instructor had a First Amendment right to use the N word in discussing its sad history. (See Hardy v. Jefferson Community College, 260 F.3d 671 (6th Cir. 2001)). Courts themselves use the N word without redaction in cases such as Savage v. Maryland (4th Cir. 2018).
Posted by: Hans Bader | Oct 18, 2020 3:21:12 PM
‘Officials’ should be fired and the former adjunct professor rehired as Dean of the Law School.
Posted by: Penrod | Oct 18, 2020 11:31:41 AM
Some prof somewhere should play a few rap tunes in class. That’ll confuse The Authorities.
Posted by: Dan Hughes | Oct 18, 2020 11:28:28 AM
Quote: “We condemn the use of this word, and we believe that saying this word and words like it, even in an academic context, is deeply hurtful,” the noted added.
Interesting, quite interesting. Apparently our law schools no longer teach constitutional law, particularly the Bill of Rights. They also seem remarkably ignorant of the importance of academic freedom, particularly the right to take up controversial topics.
Nor can I think of anything complimentary to say about those who may have complained that this word—a mere word—is "deeply hurtful," but who seem remarkably indifferent to the fact that some three-quarters of young black males grow up in fatherless homes and are far more likely to be murdered by a fellow black than by white racists.
More and more, I feel like I've wandered into an insane asylum, particularly when the topics are race and sex.
--Michael W. Perry, co-author of Lilly's Ride, a modern adaptation of Albion Tourgee's A Fool's Errand, 1879 bestselling novel about racism in the South.
Posted by: Michael W. Perry | Oct 18, 2020 10:21:33 AM
If you can’t use a word in describing a case about the work, you can’t teach the case
Posted by: Mike LIvingston | Oct 18, 2020 3:36:37 AM
If you can’t use a word in describing a case about the work, you can’t teach the case
Posted by: Mike LIvingston | Oct 18, 2020 3:36:36 AM
Why is he only resigning from "teaching at Pitt Law"?
This Seppuku (harakiri) here leaves something to be desired.
Perhaps he should relinquish his career--totally--and all his earthly possessions, and vagabond from city to city like Cain.
At once this is ridiculous, but I freudenschade when Democrats personally suffer the consequences of their votes.
Posted by: Anon | Oct 16, 2020 7:11:40 PM
This is like a Monty Python sketch.
Posted by: Half Canadian | Oct 18, 2020 5:36:11 PM