There’s More To The Reed College Student Getting Banned From Class Story…
Yesterday it was reported that a student from Reed College was banned from class because of his views on rape. Today, more details reveal the issue was not one of opinion, but one of behavior.
From our parent site, Legal Insurrection:
College student banished from class for his views on rape?
Yesterday, BuzzFeed News published a story about a freshman at Reed College, a small liberal arts school in Portland, Oregon.
Nineteen-year-old Jeremiah True told BuzzFeed News he received a letter from his freshman humanities professor, Pancho Savery, banning him from the discussion portion of the class for the rest of the semester.
Katie J.M. Baker reported for BuzzFeed News:
…“Please know that this was a difficult decision for me to make and one that I have never made before; nevertheless, in light of the serious stress you have caused your classmates, I feel that I have no other choice,” Savery wrote in the email, obtained by BuzzFeed News.
…True said he sparred with classmates over discussion topics related to ancient Greece and Rome, such as the “patriarchal” belief that logic is more important than emotion and his analysis of Lucretia’s rape. But it was his questioning of the widely shared and often debated statistic that 1 in 5 women in college are sexually assaulted — it doesn’t serve “actual rape victims” to “overinflate” numbers, he said — and his rejection of the term “rape culture” that led to him being banned, he said.
“I am critical of the idea of a rape culture because it does not exist,” he wrote in a lengthy email to Savery explaining his perspectives that he has also posted online. “We live in a society that hates rape, but also hasn’t optimized the best way to handle rape. Changing the legal definition of rape is a slippery slope. If sexual assault becomes qualified as rape, what happens next? What else can we legally redefine to become rape? Why would we want to inflate the numbers of rape in our society?”
Today, new information revealed in an article published by Inside Higher Ed suggests BuzzFeed didn’t get the whole story. Though it should be noted Professor Savery declined to provide comment to BuzzFeed, but was willing to discuss the matter with Insider Higher Ed.
Kaitlin Mulhere of Inside Higher Ed writes:
The professor, Pancho Savery, described a different scenario. True was not banned from the class for what he said, but rather as a result of a series of disruptive behaviors, Savery said. He declined to elaborate on the behaviors.
True declined to be interviewed Thursday. When contacted via e-mail, he responded that he would only answer questions if the first word in the article was “nigger.” Inside Higher Ed refused to make such a commitment, and he then declined to talk.
True’s odd request was also one made of Reason when Robby Soave contacted True for comment.
College student banished from class for his views on rape? (Legal Insurrection)
Comments
since my comment was still “waiting for moderator review” on the REED “independent” news website, Ill just go ahead and post it here too:
DISSENT IS NOT PERMITTED.
CLICK-CLACK, TIP-TAP, go the boots at Reed,
As the fascists goose-step along,
Just as brainwashed and happy as can be.
BEHOLD THE WONDROUS IDEOLOGICAL LOCKSTEP THAT LIES BEFORE YOU!
THE SKY IS NOT THE LIMIT – YOUR IMAGINATION SHALL BE LIMITED!
NOBODY has a single original thought,
NOBODY has a single differing view,
NOBODY has a single critical opinion;
NOBODY will reveal any differing political views held,
NOBODY whispers even a politically incorrect word,
EVERYONE is scared to speak freely,
EVERYONG who does so suffers unwarranted social ostricisation and is squashed with the heel of the iron boot;
NOBODY must (or even cares to) grapple with the fact that some of their ideas are factually incorrect, imoral, unconstitutional, not logical, delusional, impractical, or just damm loony, but, happily,
EVERYONE can march along knowing all their ideas are the best ideas ever in the whole goddamn world, better than the ideas of howevermany trillions of other smarter people, since everyone around them believes all the same crap. Certainly, it’s great that it’s not permissible to waste any time on being open to anything else, since this means:
NOBODY is ever offended,
NOBODY’s poor little feelings are ever hurt,
NOBODY is ever “triggered” (seriously? back in my day, when I was a strapping young man in the army, men who acted like this were called what they were, pussies or whiners, and they got ostracised until they grew the hell up or got fixed by the quack doc back at the general hq.
NOBODY will ever learn anything unique or insightful at REED,
and NOTHING will be said or heard or even whispered that could cause an evolution of thinking process that might just bring about a good change in the world, for once.
Those bastards in socially and institutionally powerful majorities who most certainly have some unproductive ideologies – they think they are 100% correct about everything, they don’t know how to think in a really critical, useful way, or question or analyze anything. Those who are in the minorities with good ideas are denied the support theyd need to make a real difference out there, and those who have truly twisted, insidious ideologies are rarely revealed to the world and dealt with as is most definitely necessary. I am not sure if think Mr. True is one of those, but he seems much more like one of the oppressed minority with some good ideas who isn’t being heard.
If the REED UNIVERSITY community and school board continues to act in this shameful, dishonorable way, then demonstrably harmful ideologies will be allowed to fester indefinitely, untreated, in many individuals in the REED community. If for no other reason than this, you must promote free speech instead of squashing it with a steely boot of censorship.
The end result is this:
NOBODY EVER LEARNS ANYTHING UNIQUE OR INSIGHTFUL,
NOBODY HAS THEIR VIEWS CHALLANGED,
NOBODY’S IDEOLOGY EVOLVES IN A POSITIVE DIRECTION,
EVERYONE’S IDEOLOGY IS CEMENTED IN A FASCIST, FUCKED UP WAY,
AND ANYONE WHO ATTEMPTS TO FREELY SAY OR PUBLISH WHAT THEY HAVE THE NATURAL RIGHT TO IS VICIOUSLY SHAMED, SHUNNED, AND ATTACKED.
ARE YOU SATISFIED WITH THAT????
And With this situation, who will be the builders, the leaders, the movers and shakers, the changers of this young, naive, supposedly edjucated generation?
AT THIS RATE, THEY CERTAINLY WON’T COME FROM REED.
NEVER GIVE UP THE FIGHT FOR ALL FREE SPEECH!
NEVER GIVE UP THE FIGHT AGAINST ALL CENSORSHIP!
NEVER GIVE UP THE FIGHT AGAINST ALL FASCISTS!
FAVOR STICKING TO WHAT YOU KNOW IS RIGHT ABOVE THE SOCIAL NORMS, THE RULES, FLAGRANTLY UNCONSTITUTIONAL AND WRONG STATUTES AND IMMORAL LAWS. ONCE IT WAS LEGAL TO OWN SLAVES. ONCE IT WAS ILLEGAL TO CRITICIZE THE KING. RIGHT NOW IN IRAQ IT IS ILLEGAL TO BE A CHRISTIAN, AND IF YOU RESIST YOU ARE BEHEADED. WE ARE GOING TO DESTROY ISIS. BUT JUST AS WE DESTROY ISIS WITH VIOLENT MEANS WE MUST TEAR DOWN THE BASICALLY FASCIST INSTITUTIONS THAT GOVERN OUR LIVES AT HOME, USING THE LAW, USING NON VIOLENT ACTIVISM, AND USING FREE SPEECH TO THE FULLEST EXTENT. ONCE IT WAS ILLEGAL TO BE A JEW. MANY OF MY FRIENDS PAID THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE FIGHTING TO PUT AN END TO THAT HORROR. ANNE FRANK WAS BREAKING THE LAW, SHOULD SHE HAVE TURNED HERSELF IN? LAW IS NOT A MORAL ROCK THAT SHOULD BE FOLLOWED BLINDLY, EVER! I WAS TOUGHT IN THE MILITARY TO NOT QUESTION. AND THAT IS DEAD WRONG. CENSORSHIP AND FASCISM WILL ALWAYS CRUMBLE TO DUST, IN THE END. FREE SPEECH SHALL OVERCOME.
YOURS TRULY,
– FRANK MILLER, WWII VET, PRIVATE 1ST CLASS, 1ST INFANTRY