Chicago City Wire

University of Chicago President Robert Zimmer has issued a statement in defense of Professor Dorian Abbot’s right to free speech, stating that the university stands behind its faculty’s right to express their opinions freely - a value he says has been upheld throughout the university’s  history.

In a statement released on Nov. 29 in response to the Free Speech Union launching a petition urging Zimmer to defend Abbot’s first amendment rights, Zimmer said the university has always welcomed varying opinions from its faculty.

“We believe universities have an important role as places where novel and even controversial ideas can be proposed, tested and debated,” the statement read. “For this reason, the University does not limit the comments of faculty members, mandate apologies, or impose other disciplinary consequences for such comments, unless there has been a violation of University policy or the law.” 

Zimmer went on to say that faculty have the liberty to agree or disagree with any policy or approach of the university without fearing discipline, adding that no faculty member speaks on behalf of the university as a whole but that the university will “continue to defend vigorously any faculty members right to publish and discuss his or her ideas.”

Abbott came under fire recently after he posted a series of videos on YouTube expressing his concern over the university’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts.