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The purpose of higher education in a democracy is to promote the discovery, refinement and sharing of knowledge and wisdom through free and open inquiry and debate. Censorship, dogma and intolerance have no place in our universities.

Trustees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill — liberals, moderates and conservatives; Democrats, Republicans and independents — have reiterated the commitment of America’s oldest public university to the freedom of thought, inquiry and expression among our faculty, staff and students.

At our July 28 meeting, UNC-CH’s Board of Trustees adopted unanimously a resolution reaffirming the university’s longtime commitment to academic freedom, a principle doubted in some quarters of American society and attacked in others — but vital to all.

The board declared its fidelity to protecting free inquiry and to cherishing a diversity of viewpoints on campus, embracing principles the University of Chicago made famous more than half a century ago in building on free-thinking tenets dating to the ancient Greek philosopher Socrates.

Among the signatories of the landmark 1967 Kalven Report on the Chicago Principles was renowned historian and civil rights activist John Hope Franklin, who taught, researched and published at Fisk University, St. Augustine’s College, N.C. Central University, Howard University, Brooklyn College, and the University of Chicago before concluding his esteemed career at Duke University.

“To perform its mission in society, a university must sustain an extraordinary environment of freedom of inquiry and maintain an independence from political fashions, passions, and pressures,” Franklin and his colleagues concluded. “A university, if it is to be true to its faith in intellectual inquiry, must embrace, be hospitable to, and encourage the widest diversity of views within its own community.”

UNC-CH has endured a few notable instances of intellectual intolerance, including the notorious Speaker Ban Law of 1963, which UNC System President Bill Friday risked his career in opposing as violations of academic freedom and free speech.

Today, our world-class faculty recognizes that it must help maintain an environment in which academic freedom flourishes. Our Faculty Council’s 2018 Statement on Speech adopted the Chicago Principles, declaring that the “ability to speak freely, debate vigorously, and engage deeply with differing viewpoints is the bedrock of our aspirations at Carolina.”

As the Faculty Council explained:

“By reaffirming a commitment to full and open inquiry, robust debate, and civil discourse, we also affirm the intellectual rigor and open-mindedness that our community may bring to any forum where difficult, challenging, and even disturbing ideas are presented. At Carolina, we have long known that light and liberty are the essential tools that allow problems to be seen, ideas to be tested, and solutions to be found. At a moment of deep societal division and flux, we embrace these truths once again.”

The trustees agree entirely with the faculty’s admirable commitment to free speech, inquiry and debate. A recent faculty-led survey of students at UNC-CH and other public universities in North Carolina shows why a renewed dedication to fundamental principles is warranted.

The 2022 report on Free Expression and Constructive Dialogue at the University of North Carolina (System) found that “a significant number of students have concerns about stating their sincere political views in class and have self-censored because they were concerned about the potential reactions, especially from peers.” We cannot let fear fester where learning should flower.

The study also found that “while most students think disruptive actions against people who have opposing viewpoints is inappropriate, a significant number of respondents see these actions as appropriate.” We cannot abide censorship and intimidation where freedom should blossom.

The study report recommended adopting plans tailored to each state university “to improve the campus culture for free expression and constructive dialogue.”

Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz, issued a statement pledging to continue exploring “how to fulfill our responsibility to be a place where ideas and opinions are argued, tested and freely expressed.”

The report also challenged trustees at each public North Carolina university to do three things:

The trustees of UNC-CH are committed unanimously and fully to carrying out these important duties in the forthright traditions of John Hope Franklin, Bill Friday, the faculty, and many other champions of free thought and expression. All of us can do no less for our beloved university, where light is liberty.

Perrin Jones, an anesthesiologist in Greenville, is a UNC-CH graduate and trustee.

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