February Luncheon Speakers
Jeff Zeman, a litigation fellow at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), addressed 29 RAC members and guests on February 4, 2022. Jeff introduced the members to the Philadelphia-based FIRE, a nonpartisan, non-profit organization dedicated to defending liberty including the right of association, freedom of speech, due process, academic freedom and freedom of conscience on U.S. college campuses. Jeff illustrated the work of FIRE with examples of threats to free speech and academic freedom at various colleges and universities involving both students and teachers. In addition to litigating the rights of individuals, FIRE has an educational aspect and produced an award-winning documentary Mighty Ira, the story of Ira Glasser, who led the American Civil Liberties Union from the late seventies to 2001.
Jeff emphasized that FIRE is completely nonpartisan and agnostic on the content of speech that is being silenced. In fact, he explained that in the case of Dr. Allyn Walker at Old Dominion University, a public research university in Virginia, FIRE first defended the professor’s first amendment right as to the academic inquiry and views of the professor on the highly controversial topic of “minor attracted individuals” and then defended the right of students to express their opposing views on Dominion Rock, a traditional physical space for student commentary at ODU.
Currently, Jeff said FIRE was working on behalf of Ilya Shapiro who was appointed in January to a prestigious post at Georgetown Law School but before his first day “tweeted” that President Biden was wrong to announce that his nominee to replace Justice Bryer would be a black woman as he had promised while campaigning. Professor Shapiro’s tweet said that Biden should appoint Sri Srinivasan, the Chief Judge of the D.C. Circuit Court who would be a progressive and a minority candidate who would be “superior to any black woman.” Georgetown deferred the start of his appointment and is conducting an investigation of the matter. Jeff explained that because Georgetown is a private institution, the First Amendment does not apply but that the FIRE is seeking to enforce the high-minded and contractually enforceable commitment that Georgetown professes as to academic freedom.
The topic strongly engaged the members who asked many insightful questions about FIRE’s activities in this arena.
Paul Savell, the Director of Rowing and Head Men’s and Women’s Rowing Coach at Drexel University, spoke to 35 members and guest on February 18th. Coach Savell explained the impact of globalization on U.S. collegiate sports. He pointed out that in his sport, the top university men’s rowing teams all recruit heavily from outside the U.S. For example, at Yale University, the reigning collegiate champions, 67% of crew roster is from overseas. Harvard is close behind at 62%. He said Washington University’s men’s crew, the perennial west coast rowing powerhouse, has just under 50% foreign students. Coach Savell said these numbers reflect the tremendous drawing power of U.S. colleges, attracting more than a million foreign students annually. Nonetheless, the driver in sports was the desire to win regardless of national origin. He said the phenomenon varied greatly by sport and varied between men’s and women’s team. At Drexel, the men’s tennis team and squash squads are both 81% foreign students while men’s rowing is just 12% from overseas. Meanwhile, the women’s crew has no foreign students and there are far fewer foreign women in sports at other universities. He said this reflects the impact of Title IX of the Civil Rights Act which requires equal opportunity in collegiate sports at institutions receiving Federal funding. Overseas, women’s sports have not developed as well in absence of similar legislation.
