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All The Things You’re Not Allowed To Say In Texas

“They invoked academic freedom and then began erasing fields of study they found politically inconvenient. They railed against ‘indoctrination,’ and then argued that the state is entitled to control everything said in the classroom.” www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/1...

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The state now controls what professors can teach.

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“and then passed legislation making it illegal to hurt white students’ feelings by discussing historical or contemporary events.”

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“Over the past decade, some conservatives have invoked principles of academic freedom and free speech in order to subvert both. These conservatives mocked “snowflakes” and ‘trigger warnings,’”…

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“Meanwhile, resources have been directed instead toward UT Austin’s new School of Civic Leadership, which claims to promote ‘freedom of thought and speech.’”

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“Peter Onyisi, a physics professor, has for years used the greenhouse effect as an example of a real-world, practical effect of quantum mechanics to students. Although he does not plan to stop, he worries that administrators could argue that climate change is not ‘germane’ to his course.”

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“…the way the censorship policy is being implemented makes the situation pretty clear: If you’re using material that state lawmakers agree with, that’s teaching; if you’re talking about something they object to, that’s advocacy, and you have to stop.”

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“Texas tech’s approach to censorship is notable for being both onerous and clumsy, in part because it relies so heavily on artificial intelligence.”

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Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

“Texas Tech’s censorship policy does not just affect the humanities. According to the AAUP lawsuit, medical students at the campus in El Paso are no longer permitted to learn about racial disparities in medical care or how to treat underserved populations.” www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/1...

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Reposted by Ruha Benjamin

After years of championing "free speech," Texas lawmakers have enabled a dramatic rise of censorship in Texas universities, banning concepts, canceling courses and closing departments seen as "woke," and even using AI bots as censors. All in the name of freedom. www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/1...

In other professors’ syllabi, the bot flagged the Pulitzer Prize–winning play Angels in America by Tony Kushner, essays by the Mexican American MacArthur genius grant recipient Sandra Cisneros, and materials related to a class about the Holocaust (that professor was told to drop material regarding Nazi persecution of LGBTQ people).

Putting aside the ideological slant of the new rules, the bot, like many large language models, seems to “hallucinate,” or make mistakes. The AAUP lawsuit lists texts banned for their “sex-based ecofeminist framework” and “gendered ecofeminist frameworks.” These phrases might sound persuasively like academese, but the academics behind the lawsuit had never heard of them; these concepts “do not exist,” the complaint says. Matthew Pehl, a history professor at Tech, told me that he knew several people who’d received reports from the system that were “plainly written by an AI that had hallucinated content or confused content from one class to another.”

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UPDATE: After hearing from friends in the DMs, we’re gonna make this a cohosted gathering. So after my censored remarks, we’ll hear about people actually doing the work that so many of our institutions pretend to. If your org wants to cohost, DM me.

Black & white photo of “Black Community Survival Conference: Serve the People Body & Sold” —a banner hanging above a group of people standing on a platform. This is a photo depicting the work of the Black Panther Party.

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So let me know if you want to come to a virtual talk next wk on “Reimagining Leadership.“ Time tbd. The focus is on cultivating critical, creative, and caring capacities in medicine, but I think it applies beyond that. I’m pretty sure we can do this without any leaders.

Ruha’s title slide for “Reimagining Leadership” with a quote by Saidiya Hartman: “Care is the antidote to violence.”

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Instead of the talk I spent hours preparing, they urged me to switch to a fireside chat and talk about my professional “journey.” But… this is the journey. And walking away is also movement.

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So they asked me to delete half the deck: •screenshots of scientific articles •George Floyd’s autopsy report •med students holding signs for “White Coats for Black Lives” •a cartoonish image of Musk lest we offend the trillionaire •Butler quote: “choose your leaders with wisdom & forethought” ETC

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The concern is that people take photos of slides and circulate content that puts orgs in the crosshairs of this repressive administration.

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Zinn Education Project @zinnedproject.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

I’m in DC scheduled to give this talk today. But the organizers flagged slides in my deck that mention racism, structural gaslighting, New Jim Code and other themes that are off limits in the Land of the Free.

APA Women’s Leadership Institute event flyer with “keynote speaker” crossed out with a red X

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Reposted by Ruha Benjamin

Johanna Fernández, ¡Presente! We're heartbroken to learn of the passing of Professor Fernández. When we hosted a class with her in 2022, she began by saying "Talking with teachers is one of my favorite activities." More here: www.zinnedproject.org/news/johanna... Listen ⬇️ youtu.be/9fTLscjOR8s?...

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Johanna Fernández Audiogram

YouTube video by ZinnEdProject

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Reposted by Ruha Benjamin

Baruch History Department @baruchhistory.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

With great sadness we report that @baruch.cuny.edu @thegraduatecenter.bsky.social @historygc.bsky.social Prof. Johanna Fernández passed away on July 30, 2026. We mourn her loss and celebrate her achievements and legacy: blogs.baruch.cuny.edu/history/?p=447

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tamara nopper @tamaranopper.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

Dr. Johanna Fernández was writing a book on the historical roots of U.S. fascism. An article related to the book is here: manifold.umn.edu/read/ces0701... BTW, George Jackson, in an interview about writing in prison, noted he was working on a detailed study of fascism sweeping the Western world.

manifold.umn.edu

On the Historical Roots of U.S. Fascism | On the Historical Roots of U.S. Fascism | Manifold@UMinnPress

The University of Minnesota Press is known for its boundary breaking editorial program in the humanities and social sciences.

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Reposted by Ruha Benjamin

Bobby Rivera @bobbyrivera21.bsky.social · 02/08/2026

Johanna Fernandez—Presente!

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Jeanne Theoharis @jeannetheoharis.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

Johanna Fernandez was one of the fiercest voices for justice whether around the world or at CUNY. Her book on the Young Lords was one of the best books ever written on the Black and Latinx Freedom Struggle. She will be dearly missed. Rest in power, my friend.

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Ruha Benjamin @ruha9.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

A MUST READ: “The stories that universities in the United States told about themselves died (again) in Gaza—in some cases by suicide. By contrast, universities in Gaza may be physically destroyed, but they are still less hollow than many universities around us...” www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

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Archives, Prophecy, and Return: The Phoenix of Gaza

This review essay of The Phoenix of Gaza virtual reality project and exhibit puts Indigenous studies and Palestine studies, as well as scholars of these fields, into citational and historical conve...

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“This has certainly been the case around the question of pro-Palestine activism by both students and faculty. The administration has made it clear that such activism is not protected by academic freedom; it is the exception to what counts as free expression on this university campus.” 2/2

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Academic Freedom and the Palestine Exception at Princeton

“On governance matters alone, Princeton warrants an AAUP investigation, if not sanction… When faculty don’t have the possibility of weighing in independently on administrative decisions, academic freedom is more likely to be compromised.” 1/2 academeblog.org/2026/07/14/a...

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BY JOAN W. SCOTT Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber has carefully curated his public reputation as a defender of free speech and academic freedom against the wanton attacks by the…

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Conversations About AI: Power, Access, and Representation

Aug 4 @ 6:30–8:30pm “Conversations About AI: Power, Access & Representation,” at Schomburg Center for Reseqrch in Black Culture✍🏽https://www.eventbrite.com/e/conversations-about-ai-power-access-and-representation-tickets-1993860775252

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Join NYPL for the latest in a series of panel discussions exploring AI, presented in collaboration with Women TechExchange.

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HARLEM WEEK/ImageNation Film Festival Film: TCB - The Toni Cade Bambara

Mon Aug 3 @ 6–9pm, “TCB: The Toni Cade Bambara School of Organizing” special screening & conversation, Lee C. Bollinger Forum, 601 W. 125th St. 🎥 www.eventbrite.com/e/harlem-wee...

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A free screening of TCB - The Toni Cade Bambara School of Organizing will feature a post screening panel discussion

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