Cornell Professor: ‘Racialization’ hampers free speech in colleges.

A law professor ‍is speaking out after witnessing the gradual racialization of higher⁢ education institutions that accelerated in the last two years, leading⁤ to the suppression of diverse viewpoints and spreading ‍of⁢ bias on campuses.

“In many ways, I’ve been‌ an eyewitness ⁣to what ​we now ⁣call the critical race phenomenon or ‍the racialization of education, capture of institutions, going ⁣back to my days​ at Harvard Law School in the early 1980s,” said William Jacobson, a law⁢ professor at Cornell University.

Silencing people is⁢ not achieved through ​throwing them in prison but through the false accusation of being a racist, which is extremely damaging because it can cost ‌people their jobs,‍ their‍ education, and their personal relationships, ‌Mr. Jacobson explained.

“Since I started the website, for ⁤almost a decade, there was a constant ​stream of attempts to ‌get me fired, mostly ​from off the⁢ campus,” said Mr. Jacobson, who is the only openly conservative member of Cornell’s 1,700-member faculty.

At that time, 21 of his Cornell⁤ colleagues signed a letter denouncing unnamed “commentators … attached to Ivy League Institutions,” who were critical​ of Black Lives Matter, and demanding “accountability.”

Dean Eduardo Peñalver also denounced⁣ Mr. Jacobson in a statement, saying that his⁣ blog posts cast “broad and categorical aspersions on the goals of those protesting for justice​ for Black Americans” and that they “do not reflect the‌ values of Cornell Law School.” ‌The dean also⁤ said that Mr.​ Jacobson’s posts were “both offensive and poorly reasoned” without providing ⁢any details.

Mr. Jacobson said that these attempts to silence him taught people the lesson of not speaking out.

Only a few professors have been fired for expressing their​ views in⁤ the ⁢last year, “but⁢ for each one who ⁤gets fired, it tells the whole campus not ⁢to speak out, and it spreads even further,” ⁤Mr. Jacobson said.

Racialization of Education

“The racialization of education, medicine, other fields now, essentially, is pitting ⁣people against each other based on race,” Mr. Jacobson said.

It is teaching⁤ students ‌to view fellow students and teachers based ⁤on the color of their skin, he pointed out. “It’s ⁣setting up racial conflict.”

The theoretical basis of racialization is⁢ critical race theory, ‌which evolved from critical legal studies or critical legal theory studied‌ in ‍the early 1980s, Mr. Jacobson said, adding that Harvard Law School, ⁣his ‌alma mater,​ was an epicenter​ of that.

During its formative years, critical race⁣ theory adopted a classic Marxist approach to everything, including the Marxist⁤ principle of class struggle, but‍ substituted race ‌for class, Mr. Jacobson explained.

“If you look⁤ at all our‍ billionaires, very few of them were born wealthy—they’ve created things.”

Critical ‌race ⁣theory is based on​ never-ending racial struggle⁤ and claims that society is systemically racist and that racism is ​not necessarily conscious in people, Mr. Jacobson explained.

“Therefore, the dead white male authors are inherently racist,‍ that they grew out of a racist system.”

“It was⁣ in ⁣many ways a revolt⁤ against the country consistent with ⁢ [the goals] of critical race theory and critical legal theory, which is ⁤tearing down society,” also called “wholesale deconstruction of society,” Mr. Jacobson said.

Critical ​race ⁣theory has developed over time and become embedded in the‌ systems, but only after⁣ the death of George ‌Floyd did it start being pushed on society, Mr. Jacobson​ said.

“It’s almost like there were plans on the shelf to take over everything. And that was the excuse they needed to do it.”

Universities declared themselves anti-racist campuses, ⁤but by ⁢being anti-racist,⁢ they⁣ meant to ​“discriminate currently, in order to cure past discrimination,” Mr. Jacobson said. “It actually ‌means being racist.”

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

There are a⁣ lot of universities that require ⁤the submission of a ​DEI statement as ⁣a condition for⁢ hiring, Mr. Jacobson said.

DEI, ‌standing for diversity, ‍equity, and inclusion, is really an agenda of critical race theory, which means that people are not⁢ treated as individuals but as group ⁢members,⁢ or proxies for group members, Mr. Jacobson said.

“These DEI statements not only require you to recite that you agree with this. They also want you to show how you have‌ tailored your ⁢career to advance it,” Mr. Jacobson‌ said. “It’s very insidious.”

Mr. Jacobson ⁢discussed the challenges he would face ‌if he were applying for faculty⁣ positions now.

“I⁣ could never be⁣ hired at Cornell‍ for many reasons,‌ one of which is political, but also, I would refuse to sign a DEI statement,”‌ he said.

Forced to Lie and Pretend

Mr. Jacobson admitted that‍ pushing the DEI ideology on ​campuses forces people to ⁤lie and to pretend they are something they are ⁣not. ​“They have to keep⁢ their ⁢own thoughts⁤ to themselves.”

He recollected his experience of studying Russian in the Soviet Union in college, which⁤ made ‌him “aware⁤ of what it’s⁣ like to⁢ live in a society where you have to​ pretend to be something you’re not.”

“You can express your private thoughts,​ but you⁤ have to be very careful​ who you‌ express them to, who is really trustworthy, and who was going to turn you in.”

“It’s a‍ terrible society to live, and that’s what academia ‌is⁤ becoming, in many ways.”

A lot of students confide in him that ⁢they feel compelled to⁢ comply with the ideology while​ in class and that’s it’s becoming too difficult to continue.

Their professors didn’t ⁤threatem, but the students worried that if they disagreed on some of ⁤these ”racial or hot topic issues,” it may⁤ affect their grades, people may smear them on the internet, or it might be hard for them to find a job, Mr. ​Jacobson explained.

The same concerns⁣ and fears exist among professors, but the faculty is less diverse in terms of viewpoint than