Abstract:
The Ontario government's "Framework Regarding Prevention of Harassment and Discrimination hi Ontario Universities" - based on a policy of "zero tolerance" - generated intense debate about the relationship between human rights and academic freedom. As reported by Robert Fulford and others, the epicentre of the debate was at Trent University, a sample of which is presented below.
R.M.C.
Academic Freedom in Context
The recently released set of guidelines by the Ontario government concerning human rights has sparked a major controversy in Ontario universities. This "Frameworks" document was intended to provide universities with guidelines for anti - discrimination and anti - harassment policies. In fact, it may have actually aided a backlash against such policies for critics immediately saw it as an attack on academic freedom. Although the Ontario government is backtracking on how "rigid" the Frameworks was meant to be, the damage has been done. Neither is the Frameworks document an isolated phenomenon; throughout Canada, universities are engaged in fierce debates on exactly the same issue.
We feel it is important to put this controversy in a broader historical and political context, and to offer perspectives which have been ignored in the simplistic coverage of the issues in the mainstream media; indeed, even within the university community, some voices are not being heard. Unfortunately, the campaign to defend academic freedom has also become a means of justifying the current backlash against educational and employment equity and the inclusive curriculum. These are crucial issues I or Canadian studies, which has historically been concerned with the need for equal access to education, respect for marginalized and diverse groups, and the creation of a balanced, inclusive curriculum.
We approach this debate from different backgrounds. As a feminist and socialist, Joan is well aware of the way in which pressures for ideological conformity have discriminated...
