Academic Freedom at Princeton

Cole M. Crittenden
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: I am both a graduate alum of Princeton as well as an administrative staff member who worked in the Office of the Dean of the Graduate School for a decade. Although I am not a faculty member, I served for an extended period as the acting dean of the Graduate School during my time as a staff member there. It is from this unusual perspective that I write to convey my dismay at the actions taken by a group of protestors towards Graduate School staff in Clio Hall on Monday of this week.

Nonviolent and peaceful protests have a place on college campuses; such protests are an important exercise of freedom of speech and expression. However, when expression turns into mob activity that threatens and displaces staff who play no meaningful role in the matters of interest to the protestors, it crosses a line.

Patrick Jaojoco, Brandi Bushman, and Humza Gondal (and many undersigned)
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: We — the undersigned leaders, community members, and allies of cultural affinity groups of Princeton University — condemn in the strongest possible terms the University’s utter disregard for the safety and wellbeing of its students of color, the ongoing racist policing of students of color, and a total dismissal of the demands for divestment that our communities have made through peaceful demonstrations.

When Princeton’s endowment supports the state of Israel (and U.S. military action), which is committing a genocide that actively targets the families, friends, and communities of Palestinian students, it is clear that our safety is not on your list of priorities.

VP Rochelle Calhoun, The Office of the Vice President for Campus Life

Excerpt:  Dear students,

I write to update you about the brief takeover of Clio Hall yesterday afternoon.

This incident represented an escalation by protestors into unlawful behavior that created a dangerous situation for protestors, University staff, and law enforcement. As protestors entered Clio Hall, our staff found themselves surrounded, yelled at, threatened, and ultimately ordered out of the building.

Olivia Sanchez
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: On Friday, April 26 at 12:30 p.m., the Alliance Against Islamic Regime of Iran Apologists (AAIRIA) hosted a demonstration on Nassau Street outside of FitzRandolph Gate to call for the removal of Princeton University research fellow Seyed Hossein Mousavian due to his former involvement in Iranian government in the 1990s and early 2000s. While AAIRIA only has nine members listed on their website, about 40 people gathered to demand that Mousavian be fired.

Mousavian faced controversy in Nov. 2023 following the beginning of an investigation by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. The investigation followed allegations that Mousavian was using his role at the University to advance Iranian interests.

By Leslie Spencer ’79 

A group of Princeton faculty have come together to create The Princeton Council on Academic Freedom. It mirrors the new faculty groups at peer institutions, like the academic freedom councils at Harvard and Columbia, Faculty for Yale, and the University of Pennsylvania’s Vision for a New Future. 

Khoa Sands
The Princeton Tory

Excerpt: Across the country, students are occupying university campuses and decrying their own schools. Chaos has unfolded at numerous universities. As authorities attempt to control the protest, criticism has mounted over perceived excessive force. The upcoming Democratic Party Convention in Chicago promises to be marked by radical demonstrations. The year was 1968.