In this episode of “Think Twice,” host Jonathan S. Tobin, editor-in-chief of JNS, welcomes Amy Wax, a tenured law professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a leading voice on issues of academic freedom, to discuss the increasingly narrow boundaries of acceptable discourse in U.S. elite universities.
At a time when free speech is under siege in the very institutions meant to protect it, Wax shares her firsthand experience of how ideological conformity has overtaken intellectual diversity on campus.
She and Tobin explore how major universities have embraced a rigid orthodoxy shaped by DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion), critical race theory and intersectionality—ideologies that not only limit debate but have fueled antisemitic and anti-Western sentiment in classrooms and beyond.
The conversation tackles the double standards that dominate academic life, where leftist activism is shielded under the banner of academic freedom while dissenting opinions, especially conservative ones, are punished, marginalized or silenced altogether.
Wax provides expert insight into the structural and legal underpinnings of this shift, including how tax exemptions, federal grants and hiring practices perpetuate ideological imbalance in higher education.
Additional topics discussed include the broader implications of mass immigration policies, the erosion of Western civic values, the cultural disconnect between elite institutions and working-class Americans and the role of figures like U.S. President Donald Trump in pushing back against academic groupthink.
The discussion also addresses the failure of university leadership to respond meaningfully to rising campus antisemitism post–Oct. 7, 2023, contrasting their inaction with their swift condemnation of views that challenge leftist narratives.
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This episode of “Think Twice” is sponsored by The Jewish Future Promise, ensuring a vibrant and thriving future for Jews and Israel.
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