The history department at UC Berkeley condemned an open letter allegedly penned by a professor for its criticisms of the Black Lives Matter movement. The anonymous letter criticized UC Berkeley faculty for failing to cultivate an environment that can tolerate criticism of social justice movements. According to the history department, criticism of Black Lives Matter “goes against our values.”
According to a report by Campus Reform, the history department at UC Berkeley condemned an anonymous letter that was allegedly written by a faculty member in response to recent protests by Black Lives Matter groups.
The anonymous letter directs criticism at UC Berkeley faculty for espousing hostility towards those that question the popular progressive dogma.
“I am one of your colleagues at the University of California, Berkeley. I have met you both personally but do not know you closely, and am contacting you anonymously, with apologies. I am worried that writing this email publicly might lead to me losing my job, and likely all future jobs in my field,” the anonymous letter begins.
The letter goes on to argue that academics at UC Berkeley have uncritically accepted narratives promoted by the Black Lives Matter movement. The letter claims that acceptance of social justice narratives has destroyed the quality of discourse between faculty members.
The claim that the difficulties that the black community faces are entirely causally explained by exogenous factors in the form of white systemic racism, white supremacy, and other forms of white discrimination remains a problematic hypothesis that should be vigorously challenged by historians. Instead, it is being treated as an axiomatic and actionable truth without serious consideration of its profound flaws, or its worrying implication of total black impotence. This hypothesis is transforming our institution and our culture, without any space for dissent outside of a tightly policed, narrow discourse.
In a tweet, the UC Berkeley history department responded by stating that the letter “goes against” the department’s “values.” The department also noted that they have yet to confirm the identity of the letter’s author.
“An anonymous letter has been circulating, purportedly written by a @UCBHistory professor. We have no evidence that this letter was written by a History faculty member,” the university tweeted. “We condemn this letter: it goes against our values as a department and our commitment to equity and inclusion.”
An anonymous letter has been circulating, purportedly written by a @UCBHistory professor. We have no evidence that this letter was written by a History faculty member. We condemn this letter: it goes against our values as a department and our commitment to equity and inclusion.
— UC Berkeley History (@UCBHistory) June 13, 2020
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