JERREVÅNG STEFAN/ZUMA Press/Newscom
Jordan Peterson, the University of Toronto psychologist known for criticizing political correctness, announced Monday that he would be a visiting fellow at the University of Cambridge's divinity school.
But on Wednesday, Cambridge's administration announced that they had rescinded the invitation following a public outcry from students and professors.
"[Cambridge] is an inclusive environment and we expect all our staff and visitors to uphold our principles," a Cambridge spokesperson told The Guardian. "There is no place here for anyone who cannot."
Peterson holds some views that are considered offensive by progressives—he has objected, for instance, to the idea that anyone should be required to use a trans person's preferred pronouns. The implication of Cambridge's statement, then, is that anyone who disagrees with the university's left-of-center commitments on these issues is unwelcome on campus.
This is a fairly warped idea of inclusion—dis-include those we label non-inclusive!—and one that imperils academic freedom and free-thinking. I disagree with many of Peterson's views, but he wanted to come to campus to engage with, and learn from, other scholars. It's possible he may have even learned something new from those conversations, or modified his views in some way.
Peterson will not get that opportunity, nor will Cambridge students and faculty get the chance to debate him or learn from him. So much for steel sharpening steel.
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