The charges are untrue, according to a spokesman for the little Mississippi school.
Campus rights activists are voicing their support for a Millsaps College professor who was allegedly fired after sending an email to individuals mourning” this prejudiced fascist land.”
However, a representative for the little Mississippi university said that reports that the college is being treated unfairly are misleading.
James Bowley, ( pictured ) a politics and religion professor, was fired Jan. 14, according to , the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. He spent 22 times teaching at the private liberal arts college.
His eviction came after he was taken on administrative leave in November for speaking out about Donald Trump’s election with his kids. According to documents obtained by FIRE, Bowley had previously sent an email to the three individuals in his” Abortion and Religion” group informing them that they would not meet that day to “mourn and practice this sexist and totalitarian land.”
According to a top program officer for school rights campaigning at FIRE, Millsaps may be held responsible because Bowley was not given proper expected process.
In a recent email, Haley Gluhanich wrote that it is crucial for FIRE to support academics like Bowley so that we can press colleges and universities to hold them accountable for holding free expression as a legal right.
According to Gluhanich, fair treatment of academic staff members is essential, particularly in cases involving completely appearance.
We also want to make sure organizations give their faculty members fair treatment throughout any disciplinary procedure, including ensuring that no one is held accountable for an alleged offense ( such as administrative left ) before a hearing, she told The Fix.  ,
FIRE accused the school of neglect in a text to the school in December for “due approach and variance from its dedication to free expression” by putting Bowley on leave.
Listening, a Millsaps director told The Fix that FIRE’s record of the situation is false.
The spokesperson stated in an emailed statement that the university is” committed to providing a secure and friendly campus for all.” But, Millsaps did not “publicly share knowledge” about its employees to regard “established employment policies”.
” A Pennsylvania-based lobbying group has nonetheless published an article concerning a personal career issue at Millsaps”, the director stated. ” The post contains many mistakes.
The article is based on incomplete information because Millsaps does not share information about adult work counts for privacy and confidentiality factors. According to the spokesperson, Millsaps may continue to address all employment issues correctly and respectfully.
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But, Gluhanich claimed that Bowley’s private exemption was included in FIRE and allowed the college to contact us regarding the matter.
She claimed Millsaps was unwilling to “interview everything the Mississippi organization claimed they had written” or correct any errors.
Additionally, a college dispute commission recommended Bowley get reinstated” quickly” after finding that” Millsaps don’t recognize a single plan that Bowley had violated, “according to FIRE’s report.
Bowley also has received aid from kids, faculty, and students. Over 100 of the 600 kids at the university signed a plea to restore him to his place, according to FIRE.
However, Chance Layton, a spokesperson for the National Association of Scholars, said he supports the writer’s academic freedom, although he would have liked to have seen Bowley choose a smarter strategy than his operate email to speak his personal thoughts.
” … Bowley’s speech didn’t prevent the speech of others. Of course, because of his position, it could be argued that his statement could cause students pause when speaking on sensitive topics, and that is’ harmful,’ perhaps,” Layton told The Fix in a recent email”. But we would err on the side of caution.”
Unlike pro-Palestinian protesters who block classroom doors or shout down speakers, the professor’s statements are” protected by academic freedom, “he said.
Layton claimed that sacking Bowley was a poor choice, and the college might have to deal with legal battles. He claimed that a more effective way to assess the impact of Bowley’s email would have been to hold an open forum with the entire community in order to assess the content of the email.
Given the bleak finances in that sector of the market,” A small liberal arts college or university would probably best avoid lawsuits,” Layton said.
The college should have chosen a fair punishment for the infraction because, in this case, it was using the incorrect forum to disrupt a community built on intellectual freedom. Students and other members of the community who can directly engage with Bowley’s statement should have these discussions, he said,” so that’s what they should be doing.”
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IMAGE: Millsaps College/YouTube
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