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Rebekah Modrak

@rebekahmodrak.bsky.social
431 followers 212 following 166 posts

artist, writer, prof at UMich, co-editor of Trouble in Censorville, and creator of RETHINK SHINOLA rethinkshinola.com and ReMade Co remadeco.org rebekahmodrak.com

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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
U-M has posted Orwellian signs on the public square this semester, cautioning against public protest. This week, the real leaders of U-M are GEO, @reprashida.govpeeps.us, and Amir Makled, speaking loud and clear on our Diag: “you can’t policy us from free speech” www.facebook.com/share/v/1Euj...
facebook.com
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
"Given the sometimes superficial and anemic historical accounts of McCarthyism, 'In the Spirit of H. Chandler Davis' is necessary reading for students, faculty and others concerned with safeguarding academic freedom in our turbulent times."
againstthecurrent.org
Remembering a Resister
In the Spirit of H. Chandler Davis: Activism and the Struggle of Academic Freedom Edited by Michael Atzmon, John Cheney-Lippold, Gary D. Krenz, Melanie S. Tanielian Michigan Publishing: Disobedienc…
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
C. J. Fitzpatrick @cjfitzpatrick.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
The Great Salt Lake is the last refuge for 12 million migratory birds with nowhere else to go. Utah just approved a 40,000-acre AI data center on its edge, with no environmental study and almost no public notice. This is the template for what comes next 🪶
substack.com
There Is Nothing Empty About Hansel Valley
How a 40,000-acre data center in Utah signals what AI infrastructure will cost the natural world
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
Evo Daily @evodaily.bsky.social · 23/05/2026
More than ever voters need to vet their democratic candidates. It's easy right now to say "Vote Blue No Matter Who" but remember that Citizens United gave the Billionaires the power to buy SCOTUS. They are desperate right now and own both GOP and Dems. Think Fetterman, Kysten Sinema, Joe Manchin.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 15/05/2026
Some UM Law School professors think the university has the right to police the “inspiration, celebration, and inclusivity“ of commencement speeches. I’d like to see the rulebook that explains how this is interpreted.
michigandaily.com
President Grasso’s apology violated institutional neutrality
Institutional neutrality means little if it allows the University to signal official disapproval of deeply held views on matters of foremost public concern. Official statements must leave no doubt tha...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
For historians concerned about assaults on academic freedom:
preview.mailerlite.io
Condemn Attacks on Free Speech of University of Michigan Historian Derek Peterson
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
UM alums who are dismayed by Pres Grasso's statement apologizing for Dr. Peterson's Commencement address, please sign this open letter to protect and uphold the University’s own professed principles of free expression and free speech. #MichiganAlumni #UMich docs.google.com/document/d/1...
docs.google.com
UM Alums - 2026 Spring Commencement
If you’re an alum of the University of Michigan, please sign the letter by clicking on this link to open a form. https://forms.gle/g5LZcE8bGGKZkG9J6 May 4, 2026 Dear President Grasso, Provost McCau...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
"A MacArthur Genius who celebrated Jewish students, Black students, women, and Palestinian solidarity activists in the same speech was publicly reprimanded... and subjected to a university apology that treats the mere mention of Palestinian humanity as something requiring institutional contrition."
qasimrashid.com
Universities Are Enabling America's Press Freedom Collapse
Professor Derek Peterson said nothing wrong. That’s exactly why the University of Michigan punished him
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
Open letter for UMich profs + students to protest President Grasso's cowardly reproach of Dr. Peterson's Spring Commencement speech acknowledging those—women, Jewish students, Black students, pro-Palestinian student activists—who "refused to accept the enclosures and orthodoxies of their time."
docs.google.com
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
Silky @silkyweineck.bsky.social · 03/05/2026
a DoJ official threatens a @umich.edu faculty member. But rather than denouncing Terrell, President Grasso denounces the chair of the faculty senate ladies and gentlemen, institutional neutrality
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
"Acker lost to no small extent because the entire Board of Regents has been deeply unpopular on campus, so much so that the Faculty Senate took the unprecedented step of formally censuring the lot of them in the fall of 2024...."
chronicle.com
No, This Michigan Regent Wasn’t Defeated by Antisemitism
Jordan Acker’s failure was about real politics, not identity politics.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
Could not have said it better — “Jordan Acker deserved to lose.” From the @michigandaily.bsky.social
michigandaily.com
From The Daily: Jordan Acker deserved to lose
At the convention, Michigan Democratic delegates decided Acker is no longer fit to run for the regency; he lost the endorsement in a landslide to the other two candidates. Considering his scandal-ridd...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Amer Makled received the most votes and will run for UM Regent. We love Amer! The people are demanding change!!!
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
UM Regent Acker wants to be re-elected so he can make crass jokes about students’ sex lives. He should be removed from the Board.
theguardian.com
Lewd messages linked to University of Michigan regent who led campaign against pro-Palestinian students
Jordan Acker, who pushed legal action against protesters, is running for re-election in race reflecting tensions on Israel
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 18/04/2026
This disgusting, misogynistic UM regent wants to be re-elected.
theguardian.com
Lewd messages linked to University of Michigan regent who led campaign against pro-Palestinian students
Jordan Acker, who pushed legal action against protesters, is running for re-election in race reflecting tensions on Israel
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 25/03/2026
Shame on the MEA for endorsing someone who eliminated DEI and doxxes educators.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 24/03/2026
Jordan Acker used his position as Regent of the @umich.edu to wage a vendetta against student protesters and to dox faculty who wouldn't serve as his mouthpiece. Now, he wants to be reelected. This is his campaign photograph.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 20/03/2026
If you’re registered Democrat in Michigan, please join me to support Amir Makled for UM Regent at the convention in April.
michigandaily.com
How Amir Makled will change UMich for the better
I sat down with Makled in the Michigan Union atrium to see whether he could be that change. In our conversation, I found a leader who listens. His policies — taking no corporate money, protecting gend...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
On Feb 23, @aaup.org hosts a conversation about activism and academic freedom, inspired by legacy of Chandler Davis (fired after upholding his 1A rights). Featuring Isaac Kamola, Henry Reichman, Marjorie Heins + Melanie Tanielian #academicfreedom @isaackamola.bsky.social @hankreichman.bsky.social
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 16/02/2026
Marschall Runge, recent CEO/Dean of Michigan Medicine received millions from pharmaceutical giant Lilly without disclosing the connection on scholarly papers.
michigandaily.com
Former Michigan Medicine dean omitted multimillion-dollar pharma ties in multiple publications, Daily investigation finds
Over a decade marked by a pandemic and nationwide cuts to health care funding, Marschall S. Runge led Michigan Medicine in a historic triple-leadership position. He served as executive vice president ...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
Thanks to @isaackamola.bsky.social for this generous endorsement of In the Spirit of H. Chandler Davis. Released today! Available everywhere. To order > disobediencepress.com
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
PUB DAY of In the Spirit of H. Chandler Davis, the remarkable set of essays inspired by the UMich prof fired in 1954 for refusing to testify to HUAC. The book’s 12 contributors argue against the suppression of protest, the policed campus, and other enemies of academic freedom. disobediencepress.com
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
Finally a candidate for U-Mich Regent who fights for civil rights and isn’t in it just for power and financial advantage. Vote Amir Makled.
mlive.com
Attorney fighting University of Michigan’s Palestine protest crackdowns now running for regent
Campaign efforts are underway for Amir Makled, who wants the University of Michigan to remain “a true public university” in both name and practice.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 21/12/2025
The University of Alabama has put allegiance to Trump over the 1st Amendment. They’ve shut down the student magazines that focus on experiences of women and Black students.
npr.org
University of Alabama suspends student magazines amid DEI crackdown
Kendal Wright, editor in chief of the University of Alabama's Nineteen Fifty-Six magazine, reacts to the suspension of two student publications amid a federal crackdown on campus DEI policies.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
The @umich.edu could easily right this situation by honoring the original agreement: • display the work in the intended spaces • extend the show's schedule • provide freedom to the artists to articulate the meaning of their work as they choose • host a closing reception • publicize the exhibition
michigandaily.com
Artists accuse University Unions of censorship
Some of the artists who participated in the "Visual History of the Unions" are accusing the administration of censorship.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
🔥🔥 piece about how @umich.edu weaponized the code of conduct against pro-Palestinian student activists.
specials.michigandaily.com
From the Daily: The University's values on trial
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
A @michigandaily.bsky.social investigation: hundreds of @umich.edu employees who looked to Work Connections for support/medical leave during an illness report years-long pattern of misconduct. 2 key complaints: WC disregarded physicians’ recommendations, and WC employees were hostile/demeaning.
michigandaily.com
Following injury and illness, hundreds of U-M employees relied on the University to facilitate their return to work. They say it failed them.
On Dec. 20, 2024, Marcellous Demps, a former patient-care provider at Michigan Medicine, was working the night shift when he slipped and fell in a dimly lit, wet hallway while carrying a 150-pound por...
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
Chris Murphy @chrismurphyct.bsky.social · 01/11/2025
The way he rubs his inhumanity in Americans” face never ceases to stun me. He’s illegally refusing to pay food stamp benefits… …while he throws a ridiculously over the top Gatsby party for his right wing millionaire and corporate friends.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
When I chaired the Faculty Senate last year, Regent Jordan Acker, enraged that he couldn’t control faculty voice, doxxed me on social media. UM police installed security cameras on my home to protect me from his threats. Now Acker wants to be re-elected. @aft.org is considering an endorsement
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 31/10/2025
UM Regents Paul Brown and Jordan Acker are trying to get on ballot for re-election. They refused to hear reports from Faculty. Dismantled DEI at UM. Stopped gender-affirming care at UM Medicine. Expelled students who criticized Israeli actions in Gaza And yet, aft.org is considering endorsing them
aft.org
AFT - American Federation of Teachers - A Union of Professionals
American Federation of Teachers public web site.
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
Amber Woods @amberspeaks.bsky.social · 25/10/2025
When a billionaire pays the troops during a shutdown, it’s not charity, but leverage and control. That’s not how republics survive. That’s how they’re bought, one crisis at a time.
nytimes.com
Donor Who Gave $130 Million to Pay Troops Is Reclusive Heir to Mellon Fortune
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
If only this was satire. Sadly, we mean it.
michigandaily.com
Why Trump would be perfect for an honorary U-M doctoral degree
Awarding Trump an honorary doctoral degree would be an opportunity to recognize the long way the University has walked in less than two years. U-M juniors may still remember times when the campus code...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 04/10/2025
Dartmouth rejects Trump’s attempts to control speech in higher education
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
Gen Z’s willingness to poke fun at themselves and at phoniness is an endearing and hopeful quality. I ❤️ their performative male contests.
swarthmorephoenix.com
Red Flags and Tote Bags  - The Phoenix
Swarthmore's inaugural Performative Male Contest featured acoustic guitars, matcha lattes, ample feminist literature, and endless posturing.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
Why did U-M end gender-affirming care? President Grasso explains the Leaders and Best rationale: “Yale, U. Connecticut, U. Pennsylvania, U. Chicago, Washington U., Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and Stanford all made the same decision.
michigandaily.com
Interim President Grasso discusses Look to Michigan, federal pressures
The Michigan Daily sat down with interim University of Michigan President Domenico Grasso to discuss Look to Michigan and concerns about accountability.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
From the @michigandaily.bsky.social Editorial Board: “We now see [the University of Michigan administration’s changes to the student code of conduct] as a catalyst, accelerating the construction of a disciplinary apparatus that the University can aim at whoever it deems threatening.”
michigandaily.com
UMich weaponizes the rules in new student code of conduct
The administration has created a space where rules only cut one way. For those that still doubt the severity of the situation on campus, Grasso and the regents stated their intentions clearly — discip...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 22/09/2025
Some public school teachers are courageously protecting kids rights to access all material, despite threats and retaliation. Thank you to @palan57.bsky.social at @forbes.com for shining a light on their remarkable stories. More than ever, we need heroes to be visible.
forbes.com
Book Shares Teacher Voices From The Culture Wars
Many of those stories have been covered by journalists, but the book Trouble In Censorville features educators who tell their own stories.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 19/09/2025
I pledge allegiance to Jon Stewart.
youtu.be
Jon Stewart's Post-Kimmel Primer on Free Speech in the Glorious Trump Era | The Daily Show
YouTube video by The Daily Show
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
“[David] Letterman joined the critics on Thursday, noting that he had beaten up on president after president over the years, and “not once were we squeezed by anyone from any governmental agency.”
nytimes.com
David Letterman Says Kimmel’s Suspension Is ‘Just Not How This Works’
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 18/09/2025
When I was in Greece, my cab driver told us that poetry and philosophy developed during a prolonged period without war. When I read the news each day about Trump, authoritarian attacks, and billionaires usurping democratic processes, and not about poetry, I think of what is lost.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 13/09/2025
This Tuesday in Ann Arbor. A reading about attempts to intimidate and silence academics.
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Reposted by Rebekah Modrak
Qasim Rashid, Esq. @qasimrashid.com · 11/09/2025
A reminder that a 2020 study by ABC news found 54 examples of violence, criminal violence in which actual charges had to be filed by state and federal authorities, inspired directly by Donald Trump. 0 such cases, ever, for Bush or Obama. Ask Trump to answer for all 54 of those, then talk to Dems.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 11/09/2025
With new language to the Statement of Student Rights and Responsibilities (in defiance of students and faculty), U-Michigan’s regents, general counsel and Student Life enact a final coup to control how “violations” are defined and adjudicated.
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Free DC @freedcproject.bsky.social · 03/09/2025
COLLEGE STUDENTS WALK OUT In one week, students at American, Howard, Georgetown, UDC, and more will make it clear there is no cooperation with DC's occupation. JOIN THE WALKOUT ON TUESDAY, SEPT 9. Sign your strike card and get connected to other students on your campus: bit.ly/free-dc-walkout
"DC College Student Walk-Out. DC College Students say No Cooperation With DC's Occupation. Sept 9, Walk Out." Free DC together with students at DC colleges and universities.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
Thanks to the Michigan Daily, faculty and staff at U Michigan share perspectives about the desirable values and actions of our next president.
michigandaily.com
U-M faculty and staff on the next University president
On May 4, University President Santa Ono announced that he was departing from the University of Michigan. His controversial tenure — from his handling of pro-Palestine activism to his decision to cut ...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
University of Michigan faculty and staff speak up about what we want in our new president. (post-Ono) @michigandaily.bsky.social @silkyweineck.bsky.social @sbagen.bsky.social @basit-zafar.bsky.social @yiliw.bsky.social @drgigiawad.bsky.social
michigandaily.com
U-M faculty and staff on the next University president
On May 4, University President Santa Ono announced that he was departing from the University of Michigan. His controversial tenure — from his handling of pro-Palestine activism to his decision to cut ...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 30/08/2025
This brought me to tears. I stand in solidarity with Chicago.
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 20/08/2025
“President Trump accused the Smithsonian Institution on Tuesday of focusing too much on ‘how bad slavery was’ and not enough on the ‘brightness’ of America as his administration conducts a wide-ranging review of the content in its museum exhibits.”
nytimes.com
Trump Says Smithsonian Focuses Too Much on ‘How Bad Slavery Was’
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 10/08/2025
For ethical, independent journalism these days, look to student journalists. The Michigan Daily editorial board has been excellent. Here, they condemn the capitulation of the corporate media. @michigandaily.bsky.social
michigandaily.com
From The Daily: A free press means freedom from corporations
This Editorial Board unequivocally condemns corporate control over media and journalism. We strongly encourage people to stay informed by way of public journalism and reputable independent media outle...
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Rebekah Modrak @rebekahmodrak.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
correcting the maddening dishonesty
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