In recent weeks and months, multiple states have passed legislation targeting academic freedom and independence at public colleges and universities. States incuding Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, North Dakota and Texas have gone after tenure, one of the most significant protections of academic freedom and independence in institutions of higher learning. Tenure is especially important at public institutions because it limits the ability of the state to coerce faculty and dictate what is (or is not) taught, as often happens in authoritarian regimes. States also have outlawed the teaching of certain topics and have denied instructors the freedom to teach their courses in an honest and constructive way, one that is driven by scientific and disciplinary expertise rather than political influence.
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