University Commons Divided: Exploring Debate & Dissent on Campus

by Peter Mackinnon

In recent years, a number of controversies have emerged from inside Canadian universities. While some of these controversies reflect debates occurring at a broader societal level, others are unique to the culture of universities and the way in which they are governed. In University Commons Divided , Peter MacKinnon provides close readings of a range of recent incidents with a view to exploring new challenges within universities and the extent to which the idea of the university as ‘commons,’ a site for open and contentious disagreement, may be under threat. Among the incidents addressed in this book are the Jennifer Berdahl case in which a UBC professor alleged a violation of her academic freedom when she was phoned by the university's board chair to discuss her blog on which she speculated about the reasons for the university president's departure from office; the case of Root Gorelick, a Carleton University biologist and member of the university’s board of governors who refused to sign a code of conduct preventing public discussion of internal board discussions; the Facebook scandal at Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Dentistry in which male students posted misogynistic comments about their female classmates. These and many other examples of turmoil in universities across the country are used to reach new insights on the state of freedom of expression and academic governance in the contemporary university. Accessibly written and perceptively argued, University Commons Divided is a timely and bold examination of the pressures seeking to transform the culture and governance of universities.

Genres: Politics

168 pages, Paperback

Published January 23, 2018

Reviews

[Geoffrey Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a short summary of several incidents on Canadian university campuses that have tested the boundaries of academic freedom and freedom of speech. Peter Mackinnon carefully explains that these two principles, while closely related, are not the same. Academic freedom covers the right to research and teach based on a body of professional work. It is assumed that peer review and other mechanisms are the ultimate test for the fruits of this research, and the freedom to study and publish, within certain limits, must be preserved. But this concept of academic freedom does not allow for unfettered criticism of university administrations , nor does it allow people to claim academic “ freedom” from different opinions being expressed on the university commons.
Mackinnon then tours various controversies, from Board of Governors disputes at UBC and Carleton, to the misogynist Facebook page set up by dental students at Dalhousie, to blocking speakers at Concordia, and a McGill professor’s article in Maclean’s magazine critical of government culture in Quebec.
The book is an interesting retelling of these incidents, but is a bit short on remedies, beyond reminding us of basic principles of justice. I agree with him that institutions and individuals should take their time before commenting on a situation, but in this era of intense traditional media pressure and the unfiltered social media, this is easier said than done!
Ironically, the book itself has come back to haunt Mackinnon, who was appointed interim president at Dalhousie. Members of the university commons there criticized the nomination because ( they claimed) Mackinnon was “too soft” on culturally inappropriate Halloween costumes!

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Language sometimes awkward or confusing for someone without a legal background. Even as someone unfamiliar with the case studies used (not Canadian), the concepts they demonstrate could be applicable to other countries in the West. Wish it had been a bit longer.

[Archana · Rating 1 out of 5]

He wrote a whole book without saying anything.