Philosophers cheer up: academic mathematics is apparently also full of self-righteous tin-pot dictator wannabes just like philosophy! Professor Thompson, whose opposition to mandatory "diversity statements" we noted last week, is now the target of a petition, which inspired this commentary from a mathematician who asked not to be named:
As usual, there is a claim of harm to minority students, but no explanation of what that harm is. There is constant emphasis on identity, so that the signers apparently believe there is a single aspect of a student's background that defines that student and determines how that student will learn. There are repeated claims that opposition to diversity statements is opposition to diversity, and repeated claims, without any proof or even examples, that diversity statements will improve diversity in universities. There is the claim that we are learning more about how to teach diverse students effectively, again with no supporting evidence. The petition is outraged that the journal will print a controversial opinion, and the obvious statement that not all mathematicians will agree with Thompson's letter, but no attempt to say that disagreement involves a majority, or even a large number, of mathematicians. And, who is not in a position to raise their own voice through such letters and petitions?
There is the suggestion that her letter is against "actively including more students in mathematics," which is, of course, not true, given no evidence that is cited, or that I've seen, that supports the idea that diversity statements will do that. And I see no evidence that Thompson equates "critiquing privilege with oppressing the privileged."
And of course, as Sullivan often points out, a sense that there are only the powerful and the powerless.
I could go on and on, but it is clear that the same fixation on identity and power has seduced at least these mathematician signatories just as it seems to have done in many areas of the liberal arts....
Beyond the petition, there is this attack on Professor Thompson and the journal that published her opinion piece (there are some good rejoinders in the comments) and a call by Chad Topaz (a math professor at Williams College) to boycott the journal [UPDATE: the link no longer works, as explained here] that published Professor Thompson's opinion piece. (I'm told Topaz was the author of the petition, as well.) Happily, this maniac Topaz is now being subjected to a backlash for his contempt for academic freedom in the form of a petition supporting Professor Thompson's freedom of expression. The latter is a good sign that the math community still has a more robust commitment to academic freedom and open debate than philosophy these days! Biologist Jerry Coyne (Chicago) has more extended coverage of and commentary on this debacle.
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