First Things Podcast

The Fall of the American College

Sep 9, 2024
David R. Barnhizer, an Emeritus professor of law at Cleveland State University and author, delves into the troubling shift in American colleges. He critiques the rise of identity politics and the oppressive atmosphere it creates against dissenting views. Barnhizer examines how elite universities have morphed into networking hubs rather than centers of rigorous education, and he discusses the erosion of job security for faculty amid administrative pressures. The conversation also touches on the waning role of journalism in addressing these issues.
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ANECDOTE

Critical Legal Studies Invitation

  • David Barnhizer recounts being invited to join the Critical Legal Studies movement at Harvard.
  • He declined due to their explicit reliance on Marxism and socialism, which clashed with his belief in intellectual freedom.
INSIGHT

Gradual Ideological Takeover

  • The takeover of universities by certain ideologies happened gradually, through faculty hiring and administrative control.
  • This "war of attrition" involved placing ideologically aligned individuals in positions of power.
INSIGHT

Woke Philosophy's Totalizing Vision

  • Woke philosophy isn't just about race or identity, but a theory of everything, aiming for total control.
  • It uses Orwellian language to enforce compliance and shame dissenters into silence.
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