A Canadian professor who was targeted for his right-wing views while lecturing at an English university decided to set up a Wokism course – one of the first of its kind – at a rival university.
Erix Kaufmann headed the politics department at Birkbeck University in London, but decided to step down after 20 years at the institution, he explained on X (formerly Twitter).
“My university’s precarious financial situation played a role, but I was also repulsed by cancel culture and drawn to the chance to help make Buckingham the only ‘free speech university’ in the UK. – Brittany,” he pointed out in particular.
1/ After 20 years I am leaving a full professorship at the University of London and going to the University of Buckingham. In January, I’m launching a new, low-cost, open-access online course on “Woke: the Origins, Dynamics and Implications of an Elite Ideology.” Sign up: https://t.co/wkEbDvQAbQ
— Eric Kaufmann (@epkaufm) October 2, 2023
He will therefore lead a course entitled “Wokism: Origins, Dynamics and Implications of an Elite Ideology” at the University of Buckingham.
According to the description of the online course, it is proposed to analyze wokism “in an empirical and analytical manner and not from a particular political or normative position.”
“Progressive conformism and cancel culture are distorting the teaching and research mission of universities.” Between the extreme controversy and the academic monoculture controlled by progressives lies a vast area of unspoken truth that continues to expand,” the 53-year-old professor added.