Lectures on Race Canceled at Arkansas-Little Rock

"The newspaper reported that professors first raised concerns last month when the university scrubbed mentions of an upcoming "Evenings with History" lecture series from the university website. Administrators were reportedly concerned that two of the lectures could prompt scrutiny from state officials, specifically a February lecture titled "Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and the Death Penalty in Arkansas and the United States," and a discussion with David Roediger about his memoir, which is titled "An Ordinary White: My Antiracist Education" scheduled for April."

""I also asked for clarification about how we are violating the law because the Department of History takes the law very seriously," Key wrote, adding the administrators present confirmed they weren't violating the law. "In search of further clarification, I pointed out that the law explicitly allows the discussion of ideas, history, and public policy that may be controversial or 'that individuals may find unwelcome, disagreeable, or offensive.' As the conversation unfolded, it became clear that this entire effort revolves around guessing what might offend"

Professors at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock canceled participation in scheduled history lectures on racism and racial equity after the university removed references to the series from its website and administrators flagged two events for potential state scrutiny. The flagged events included a February lecture on race, ethnicity, gender, and the death penalty and an April discussion with David Roediger about his memoir. History Professor Barclay Key raised concerns after administrators suggested changing a lecture title and adding language to a description to avoid running afoul of state law, and he refused those edits.

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