A political attack on academic freedom in the US
- Hester Bijl - Rector Magnificus, Pieter Slaman - Assistant Professor, Carina van de Wetering - Lecturer, Jessie Morgan-Owens - Assistant Professor, Anouschka Versleijen - Director LURIS & Martine de Vries - Professor Normative aspects of medicine
- Date
- Friday 4 April 2025
- Time
- Address
- Kamerlingh Onnes Buildings
Steenschuur 25
2311 ES Leiden - Room
- A144
About the Event
News reports about the political attack on American universities have been a source of great concern over the past two weeks. Data files are being scanned for banned words and universities are being forced to take financial measures against their own members. Lecturers and students have been arrested and deported – contradicting court orders. Academics are under intense pressure to conform, and in the process, standards and even laws are being disregarded.
Alongside these major concerns, the latest developments also raise serious practical issues. Countless institutional and personal links with the US could become problematic. Is it still safe to travel, and can research data continue to be stored securely on American servers? Will we still be able to work with people who are free to speak and write? And how can we support our American colleagues?
During this session, experts will discuss political developments in the US, the experiences of American colleagues in Leiden and the concrete implications for Dutch medical research. Finally, Luris will suggest a number of measures you can take to protect your research from unauthorised political interference.
Programme
16.00 - Opening by Hester Bijl and Pieter Slaman
16.05 - Carina van der Wetering on American politics
16.15 - Jessie Morgan-Owens on difficulties for our American-Dutch staff
16.25 - Martine de Vries on obstacles in medical research
16.35 - Anouschka Versleijen shares tips to protect research
16.45 - Discussion
17.30 - End
Registration
Please register through this link.