FAIR News

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Last week, FAIR covered two federal court cases regarding discriminatory COVID-19 aid programs that prioritized grants based on applicants’ skin color and gender. Since then, the case of Vitolo v. Guzman, highlighted in our Profiles in Courage, was reversed in the sixth circuit Court of Appeals in favor of the temporary restraining order which subsequently blocks federal grant programs from prioritizing aid based on immutable characteristics.

“As today’s case shows once again, the ‘way to stop discrimination on the basis of race is to stop discriminating on the basis of race.’”

Read the decision here.

For Quillette, Tim Hsiao wrote a piece in which he breaks down the social justice orthodoxy’s focus on “lived experience” and how it undermines statistical and logical reasoning in both public and private discourse. 

“Lived experiences are often vividly used by progressive activists as evidence of widespread injustice, accompanied with a call for action and social change. Yet basing one’s entire case for widespread injustice and sweeping social change on lived experiences is, quite simply, bad statistical reasoning.”

Read the full article here.

The Department of Classics at Princeton University moved to ax ancient Greek and Latin language requirements and the Classics “track” as a whole. Many universities have taken similar actions in recent months, citing equity and inclusion alongside the curious belief that appreciation of Greco-Roman traditions somehow upholds racism. Marianne Besas covered the issue for The College Post.

“The department will also take into account how Greek and Roman cultures ‘have been instrumentalized, and have been complicit, in various forms of exclusion, including slavery, segregation, white supremacy, Manifest Destiny, and cultural genocide.’”

Read the full article here.

John Wood Jr. of Braver Angles wrote a compelling piece on our fundamental right to free speech for Areo Magazine. In it, he outlines how free speech is not merely essential for defending the offensive but even more so, for allowing us to persuade those with whom we disagree. 

“The deeper rationale for our culture of free speech lies less in our negative right not to be oppressed for our opinions, than in our positive obligation to persuade one another towards progress. The former is a necessary condition of a legally free society. But the latter is the indispensable disposition by which we make use of that liberty in ways that help sustain our freedom itself.”

Read the full article here.

As the controversy over teaching Critical Race Theory in K-12 schools continues to intensify, so have disagreements over the definition of the curriculum. FAIR Advisor Andrew Sullivan wrote an in-depth essay detailing how the broadly defined intellectual framework seeks to undermine liberal democracy.

“Every time a liberal institution hires or fires someone because of their group identity rather than their individual abilities, it is embracing a principle designed to undermine the liberal part of the institution. Every university that denies a place to someone because of their race is violating fundamental principles of liberal learning.”

Read the full article here.

As the debate surrounding Critical Race Theory in education continues to escalate, FAIR Advisor Bari Weiss hosted a debate on her Substack between David A. French and FAIR Advisor Christopher Rufo on whether public schools should ban the teaching of Critical Race Theory. 

In recent months, lawmakers in over ten states have moved to ban or restrict CRT from public education. While FAIR is strongly opposed to the race-essentialist ideology intrinsic to CRT, we recognize the First Amendment concerns raised by such laws and do not believe in banning ideas from the classroom.

Instead, we advocate for a curriculum that offers various viewpoints and encourages discourse while emphasizing our common humanity. We will be releasing the FAIR Learning Standards as a part of our Loving Day celebration.

Listen to the discussion here.

FAIR Advisor Ian Rowe joined C-SPAN for a discussion regarding the controversy surrounding Critical Race Theory in education with Dr. Chanelle Wilson of Bryn Mawr College.

“My concern is that Critical Race Theory is becoming a massive distraction to the core issue for kids of all races.”

Watch the discussion here.

For Persuasion, FAIR Advisor Zaid Jilani wrote a piece summarizing the many failures of the mainstream media on its long road to acceptance of the lab leak theory. 

“It should hardly be a surprise that Americans are rapidly losing faith in the media. As the story of the lab-leak hypothesis shows, too many in our current news media environment are quick to politicize their coverage and seek the truth only when it’s convenient for their faction.”

Read the full article here.

FAIR Advisor Glenn Loury joined The Rubin Report to discuss disparities in outcomes between various groups. He talked about why racial disparities have always existed, and perfect equality is a historic abnormality.

Watch the interview here.

Upcoming Events

The Foundation Against Intolerance & Racism invites you to join us for the first FAIR Film Festival!

FAIR will be hosting online screenings of the feature films How Jack Became Black, Better Left Unsaid, Accidental Courtesy, and the film series The Witness Project. Additionally, attendees can view the world premiere of The Woke Reformation. 

From June 21st through 25th each night at 9 PM EDT, we will be hosting a Q&A with the filmmakers and special guests including Daryl Davis, Melissa Chen, Peter Boghossian, Eli Steele, and John Wood Jr.

Learn more and register here.

On June 11th at 3:00 pm EDT, FAIR Advisor Ayaan Hirsi Ali will be part of a panel at the Hoover Institute to discuss her upcoming book Prey: Immigration, Islam, and the Erosion of Women's Rights. 

Learn more here.

Heterodox Academy is hosting two events diving into DEI's merits and pitfalls:

Thursday, June 3 at 7 pm EDT: DEI Training Programs: What Do They Aim For? What Should They Aim For? 

Panel conversation with Roslyn Artis, Joseph Guarneri, George Yancey, and moderated by Musa al-Gharbi. Free and open to the public, advanced registration required.

Learn more and register here.

Wednesday, June 9 at 7 pm EDT: A Deep Dive into DEI: Research, Interventions, and Alternatives

Panel conversation with Edward Chang, Frank Dobbin, Garrett Johnson, and moderated by Ilana Redstone. Free and open to the public, advanced registration required.

Learn more and register here.