Dear President Schill and Provost Hagerty,

Northwestern’s University Mission declares its commitment to encourage debate; champion access, diversity and belonging; strengthen our community; and care about one another. NU Student Affairs pledges to uphold a commitment to social justice; confront practices that inhibit equity and justice; seek first to listen and understand; be curious and open to learning; and ask questions instead of ascribing intent.

We, the undersigned NU faculty of different backgrounds and political viewpoints, come together in support of these principles and in the firm belief that the University will violate its own commitments if it were to take any action to block our students’ rights to peaceful speech, assembly and dissent.

This is a historic moment in which students across the country and around the world are voicing what they want their universities to be and do in terms of policies, ethics, partnerships and finances. These students’ visions are based on an informed understanding of our collective well-being and, oftentimes, in a principled objection to that which impedes it.

As NU affirms, students have a right to ask questions. NU’s vision statements require us to listen and engage with respect. The University will fail in its most basic promises and commitments if it moves to shut down student gatherings rather than open spaces for transparent and serious discussion.

Northwestern has a long history of successful student protests and strikes dating back to the 1960s. The students who are engaging in protests today are upholding and strengthening that proud tradition. Should the current administration choose to stand in their way, it will be on the wrong side of history.

We return to NU’s pledge to “ask questions instead of ascribing intent.” We will not tolerate the weaponization of unfounded presumptions of bigotry to smear and silence students who are not engaging in anything of the sort. And as educators, we will not stand for the criminalization of peaceful protest on our campus.

Signed,

Wendy Pearlman, Professor of Political Science and Middle East & North Africa Studies, WCAS
Elizabeth Shakman Hurd, Professor of Religious Studies & Political Science, WCAS
Elizabeth Smith, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Anthropology and WCAS Advising
Josh Honn, Humanities and Prison Education Librarian, University Libraries
Hannah Feldman, Associate Professor of Art History, WCAS
Ipek Kocaomer Yosmaoglu, Associate Professor of History, WCAS
katrina quisumbing king, Assistant Professor of Sociology, WCAS
Katherine E. Hoffman, Associate Professor, Anthropology & MENA Studies, WCAS
Michelle N. Huang, Assistant Professor, English & Asian American Studies, WCAS
Michael Loriaux, Professor of Political Science, WCAS
Shirin Vossoughi, Associate Professor, SESP
Zach Wood-Doughty, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Computer Science, WCAS
Nitasha Sharma, Professor and Director, Black Studies and Asian American Studies, WCAS
Kalyan Nadiminti, Assistant Professor of English, WCAS
Moya Bailey, Professor of Communication Studies
Doug Kiel, Associate Professor of History, Center for Native American and Indigenous Research (CNAIR), and Kaplan Humanities Institute
Loubna El Amine, Assistant Professor of Political Science, WCAS
Beatriz O. Reyes, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Global Health Studies Program; Native American and Indigenous Studies, CNAIR
Qiu Fogarty, Associate Director, Social Justice Education
Emrah Yildiz, Assistant Professor, Anthropology & Middle East & North African Studies
Sonya Kaleel, Adjunct Faculty/Coach, School of Education & Social Policy / MSLOC
Erica Weitzman, Associate Professor of German, WCAS
Ian Hurd, Professor & Director, Political Science & Weinberg Center for Int’l & Area Studies
alithia zamantakis, Research Assistant Professor, ISGMH and Medical Social Sciences, FSM
Luis Amaral, E.O. Haven Professor, McCormick
Santiago Molina, Assistant Professor of Sociology, WCAS
Steven W. Thrasher, Daniel Renberg Chair, Medill
Brannon Ingram, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, WCAS
Kim Marion Suiseeya, Associate Professor, Political Science, Environmental Policy & Culture
Sirus Bouchat, Assistant Professor, Political Science, WCAS
Rebecca C. Johnson, Associate Professor, English and Middle East & North African Studies
Barnor Hesse, Associate Professor, Black Studies, WCAS
Robert Orsi, Professor, Religious Studies and History, WCAS
Kelly Wisecup, Professor, English and Center for Native American & Indigenous Studies
James Bielo, Associate Professor, Religious Studies, WCAS
Leslie M. Harris, Professor, History, WCAS
Justin L. Mann, Assistant Professor, English and Black Studies, WCAS
Jamie Carlstone, Authority Metadata Librarian, University Libraries
Mark Hauser, Professor and Director, Anthropology and Latin American & Caribbean Studies
Nicole Spigner, Assistant Professor, Black Studies & English, WCAS
Ivy Wilson, Associate Professor, English, WCAS
Martha Biondi, Professor, Black Studies and History, WCAS
Rebecca Zorach, Mary Jane Crowe Professor, Art and Art History, WCAS
Thadeus Dowad, Assistant Professor, Art History, WCAS
Shalini Shankar, Professor, Anthropology & Asian American Studies, WCAS
Shelby Hatch, Associate Professor of Instruction, Chemistry, WCAS
Helen Tilley, Associate Professor, History, WCAS
Sarah Schulman, Ralla Klepak Professor of English, MFA Program in Creative Writing, English
J. Seawright, Professor, Political Science, WCAS
Miriam Petty, Associate Professor, Radio/Television/Film
Sepehr Vakil, Associate Professor, School of Education and Social Policy
Dotun Ayobade, Assistant Professor, Performance Studies and Black Studies, WCAS
Kennetta Hammond Perry, Associate Professor, Black Studies and History, WCAS
Alec Powers, MPH, FSM ISGMH
Mary Pattillo, Professor, Black Studies and Sociology, WCAS
Elham Hoominfar, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Global Health Studies Program
Spencer Evans, Senior Research Technologist, Dermatology
Sean Hanretta, Associate Professor, Department of History, WCAS
Lauren Stokes, Associate Professor, History, WCAS
Mérida M. Rúa, Professor, Latina and Latino Studies, WCAS
Gregory Phillips II, Associate Professor, Department of Medical Social Sciences
Tabitha Bonilla, Associate Professor, Human Development & Social Policy, SESP
Brent Huffman, Professor, Medill
Michael Anthony Turcios, Postdoctoral Fellow, Radio/Television/Film; Center for Native American and Indigenous Research
Emily Maguire, Associate Professor, Spanish and Portuguese, WCAS
Saad Ranginwala, MD, Assistant Professor, Feinberg School of Medicine
Jennifer Cole, Assistant Chair, Chemical and Biological Engineering
Megan Hyska, Assistant Professor, Philosophy
Megan Bang, Professor & Director, SESP & Center for Native American & Indigenous Research
Julie Lee Merseth, Assistant Professor, Political Science, WCAS
Curtis Miller, Lecturer, Art Theory & Practice
Kasey Evans, Associate Professor of English, WCAS
Annie Wilkinson, Postdoctoral Scholar, Anthropology, WCAS
Ana Aparicio, Associate Professor, Anthropology and Latina & Latino Studies Program, WCAS
becca greenstein, stem librarian, university libraries
Bimbola Akinbola, Assistant Professor, Performance Studies, WCAS
Ana Arjona, Associate Professor of Political Science, WCAS
Jackie Stevens, Professor, Political Science
Joshua Chambers-Letson, Professor of Performance Studies and Asian American Studies, Performance Studies and Asian American Studies
Anna Parkinson , Associate Professor, German
Michael Metzger, Academic Curator of Cinema and Media Arts, Block Museum of Art
Mary McGrath, Assistant Professor, Political Science, WCAS
Arionne Nettles, Lecturer, Medill
Ray San Diego, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Asian American Studies, WCAS
Sami Hermez, Associate Professor and Director of Liberal Arts Program, Northwestern in Qatar
Jorge Coronado, Professor, Spanish and Portuguese /LACS, WCAS
Samuel Weber, Avalon Foundation Professor of Humanities, German/CLS
David Schoenbrun, Professor, History and African Studies, WCAS
Nichole Pinkard, Professor, School of Education and Social Policy
Averill Curdy Murr, Professor of Instruction, English, WCAS
Hollyamber Kennedy, Assistant Professor, Art History, WCAS
Tracy Vaughn-Manley, Assistant Professor, Black Studies, WCAS
Mariajose Rodriguez Pliego, Assistant Professor, English, WCAS
James Mahoney, Gordan Fulcher Professor of Decision-Making, Political Science and Sociology
Jeffrey A. Winters, Professor, Political Science, WCAS
Ricky Hill, Research Assistant Professor, Sexual and Gender Minority Health & Wellbeing
Nate Cohen, Adjunct Professor of Instruction, Theatre
Michelle Birkett, Associate Professor, Medical Social Sciences
Karen Olivo, Director of Music Theatre Certificate Program, Theatre
Lina Britto, Associate Professor of History, Department of History, WCAS
Kevin Buckelew, Assistant Professor, Religious Studies, WCAS
Liz Hamilton, Copyright Librarian, University Libraries
Alessia Ricciardi, Professor, CLS
LaShandra Sullivan, Associate Professor, Anthropology, WCAS
Gina Petersen, Assessment Librarian, Northwestern University Libraries
Peter H. S. Sporn, MD, Professor of Medicine, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Medical Education, Feinberg School of Medicine
Tara Fickle, Associate Professor, Asian American Studies Program
Alejandra Uslenghi, Associate Professor, Spanish & Portuguese, Comparative Literary Studies
Penelope Deutscher, Professor, Philosophy and CLS
Marianne Hopman, Associate Professor, Classics and Comparative Literary Studies
Nick Winters, Assistant Professor, Classics
Hasheem Hakeem, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Department of French and Italian
Namratha Kandula, Professor, Medicine, Feinberg School of Medicine
AJ Christian, Professor, Communication Studies
Tara Gonsalves, Assistant Professor, Sociology
Torsten Menge, Assistant Professor, Liberal Arts, Northwestern in Qatar
Katie Risseeuw, Librarian, University Libraries
Charlotte Rosen, Postdoctoral Scholar in Public Service, Center for Historical Studies
Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle, Professor, Art Theory and Practice
Sulafa Zidani, Assistant Professor, Communication Studies
Patty Loew, Prof. Emerita, Medill; Center for Native American & Indigenous Research
Katia Viot-Southard, Associate Professor of Instruction, French and Italian
Megan Baker, College Fellow, Anthropology
Igal Szleifer, Professor, Biomedical Engineering
Jeong Eun Annabel We, Assistant Professor, Asian Languages and Cultures
Rebecca Ewert, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Sociology
Doron Shiffer-Sebba, Postdoctoral Fellow, Sociology
TJ Billard, Associate Professor, Communication Studies and, by courtesy, Sociology
Leila Tayeb, Assistant Professor in Residence, Communication & Liberal Arts, NUQ
Calvin Liang, Postdoctoral Fellow, Communication Studies
Nasrin Qader, Associate Professor, French and Italian, WCAS
Heather Jaber, Assistant Professor in Residence, Communication & Liberal Arts, NUQ
Gretchen Neidhardt, Librarian, Galter Health Sciences Library and Learning Center
Diego Arispe-Bazán, Assistant Professor, Anthropology, WCAS
Cynthia Robin, Professor and Chair, Anthropology, WCAS
Alfonso Fierro, Assistant Professor, Spanish and Portuguese, WCAS
William Leonard, Professor, Anthropology and Global Health Studies, WCAS
Laura Beth Nielsen, Professor of Sociology, WCAS
Noelle Sullivan, Professor Instruction and Associate Director, Program in Global Health Studies
Amanda Logan, Associate Professor of Anthropology, WCAS
Lauren Beach, Assistant Professor of Medical Social Sciences
Laura Brueck, Professor of South Asian and Comparative Literature, WCAS
Lydia Barnett, Associate Professor of History, WCAS
Rayvon Fouché, Professor, Communication Studies and Medill
kihana miraya ross, Assistant Professor, Black Studies
Diane Knoepke, Adjunct Instructor, MS in Learning & Organizational Change
Aldon D. Morris, Emeritus Professor, Sociology and Black Studies
Karrie Ann Snyder, Associate Professor of Instruction , Sociology, WCAS
Kari Lydersen, Assistant Professor, Medill
Domietta Torlasco, Professor, French and Italian/CLS
Patrick Janulis, Associate Professor, Department of Medical Social Sciences
Charlayne Mitchell, Assistant Professor of Instruction, Global Health Studies
Jonathon Glassman, Wayne V. Jones Research Professor Emeritus, History, WCAS
Mary Ann Weston, Associate Professor Emerita, Medill
Kate Masur, Professor of History, WCAS
J. Michelle Molina, Associate Professor, Religious Studies, WCAS
Lakshmi Padmanabhan, Assistant Professor, Radio, TV, Film
Peter Locke, Associate Professor of Instruction, Global Health Studies
Paul Ramirez, Associate Professor of History, WCAS
Sandra L. Richards, Professor Emerita, Black Studies & Theatre
Nina Gurianova, Professor, Slavic and CLS, WCAS
Jose Medina, Walter Dill Scott Professor of Philosophy, WCAS
Caitlin Fitz, Associate Professor of History, WCAS
Michael Rakowitz, Professor of Art Theory & Practice and MENA Studies
Jen Munson, Assistant Professor, Learning Sciences, School of Education and Social Policy
Vilna Bashi, Osborn Professor of Race, Ethnicity, and Global Diversity, Sociology, WCAS
Corey Byrnes, Associate Professor, Kaplan, Asian Languages and Cultures, Comparative Literary Studies
Shayna Silverstein, Assistant Professor, Performance Studies and MENA Studies
Patrick Noonan, Assistant Professor, Asian Languages and Cultures, CLS

If you would like to respond publicly to this op-ed, send a Letter to the Editor to [email protected]. The views expressed in this piece do not necessarily reflect the views of all staff members of The Daily Northwestern.