Ko ács, K isz a; Spannagel, Janika
A icle — Published Ve sion
Academic eedom: Global a ia ions in no m
concep ualiza ion, di usion and con es a ion – an
in oduc ion
Global Cons i u ionalism
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
WZB Be lin Social Science Cen e
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Ko ács, K isz a; Spannagel, Janika (2025) : Academic eedom: Global a ia ions
in no m concep ualiza ion, di usion and con es a ion – an in oduc ion, Global Cons i u ionalism,
ISSN 2045-3825, Camb idge Uni e si y P ess, Camb idge, Vol. 14, Iss. 1, pp. 13-25,
h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/S2045381724000133
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SPECIAL ISSUE INTRODUCTION
ACADEMIC FREEDOM: CONCEPTUALISATIONS, CONTESTATIONS AND
CONSTITUTIONAL CHALLENGES
Academic eedom: Global a ia ions in no m
concep ualiza ion, di usion and con es a ion –an
in oduc ion
K isz a Ko ács
1,2
and Janika Spannagel
3
1
WZB Be lin Social Science Cen e , Reichpie schu e 50, 10785 Be lin, Ge many;
2
ELTE Uni e si y Facul y o
Social Sciences, Pázmány Pé e sé ány 1/A, 1117 Budapes , Hunga y and
3
F eie Uni e si ä Be lin,
Kaise swe he S . 16-18, 14195 Be lin, Ge many
Co esponding au ho : K isz a Ko ács; Email: [email p o ec ed]
Abs ac
This In oduc ion p o ides an o e iew o he opics co e ed in his special issue on
‘Academic eedom: Global a ia ions in no m concep ualiza ion, di usion and con es -
a ion’, which explo es wha academic eedom means, how his may a y on a global le el,
how he no m sp ead a ound he wo ld and wha cu en con es a ions look like. The
In oduc ion de ines some e ms essen ial o his deba e, such as he eedom o science,
academic eedom, eedom o scien i ic esea ch and he igh o science, and o e s an
analy ical amewo k o he a ious con ibu ions o he special issue. This includes, in
pa icula , a dis inc ion be ween illibe al and libe al science sc ip s and hei ela ionship
wi h academic eedom, as well as be ween di e en o ms o con es a ions and limi a ions
o academic eedom. Au ho s om a ying disciplina y and egional backg ounds add ess
di e en aspec s o his heme in hei espec i e con ibu ions, o which he in oduc ion
gi es a b ie summa y.
Keywo ds: academic eedom; con es a ions; eedom o science; limi a ions; science sc ip
Academic eedom and eedom o science
Academic eedom is a undamen al alue ha p omo es eedom o science and he ee
exchange and expansion o human knowledge. Ye i is globally in decline, acco ding o
he la es da a o he Academic F eedom Index.
1
While his end does no a ec all
socie ies, some o he mos populous coun ies in he wo ld –including China, India and
© The Au ho (s), 2024. Published by Camb idge Uni e si y P ess. This is an Open Access a icle, dis ibu ed unde he e ms
o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion licence (h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0), which pe mi s un es ic ed
e-use, dis ibu ion and ep oduc ion, p o ided he o iginal a icle is p ope ly ci ed.
1
The Academic F eedom Index assesses de ac o academic eedom le els in 180 coun ies a ound he
wo ld. I is published by he FAU E langen-Nü nbe g, Ge many, and he V-Dem Ins i u e a he Uni e si y o
Go henbu g, Sweden. La es da a a ailable a <h ps://academic- eedom-index.ne >.
Global Cons i u ionalism (2025), 14: 1, 13–25
doi:10.1017/S2045381724000133
he Uni ed S a es –a e among hose whe e academic eedom le els ha e been de e io -
a ing o e he pas decade. This leads o a si ua ion whe e mo e han hal o he wo ld’s
popula ion is cu en ly seeing academic eedom in hei coun y weakening –in addi ion
o many o he coun ies, whe e i is s agna ing a an al eady low le el.
2
These wo isome
ends a e challenging us as academics
3
o examine hem in mo e dep h, no only because
hey pose impo an in ellec ual p oblems, bu also because he epe cussions o a global
academic eedom ecession a e a ec ing he global communi y o science as a whole.
Mo eo e , since he concep ion o his special issue, he iolen a ack by Hamas agains
Is ael inOc obe 2023 and he subsequen wa and humani a ianc isisin Gaza ha e u he
c ea ed a ense backd op o enewed enc oachmen s on he uni e si y space in many
coun ies. S uden p o es s ha e sp ead widely, and uni e si y g ounds in he Uni ed S a es,
he Uni ed Kingdom, Ge many, and many o he places ha e become he si e o Gaza
solida i y encampmen s. The main ocus o he public deba es su ounding hese p o es s is
on limi so ee speech on campus and i s ensions wi h s uden s’ igh s o a disc imina ion-
ee access o educa ion.
4
Howe e , he e a e also speci ic implica ions o academic
eedom as p o esso s, accused o sympa hizing wi h Hamas o o p o es ing illegally, ha e
been a es ed, h ea ened wi h dismissal, suspended o been he a ge o de ama ion and
ha assmen .
5
This is no o say ha disciplina y ac ion is unjus i ied in all cases o ha
academic eedom p o ec s ha e speech o illegal ac i i ies. Howe e , i is clea ha he
hea ed a mosphe e has emboldened c i ics o academic eedom and opened he doo s o
inc eased poli ical sc u iny and in e e ence in academic a ai s.
6
While he con ibu ions in
his special issue do no di ec ly add ess hese ecen de elopmen s, hey speak o ele an
b oade ques ions o academic eedom and i s limi s, a ia ions and con es a ions.
Speci ically, he special issue engages wi h hese ques ions in wo ways. Fi s , we aim o
add ess he unde lying ques ion o wha academic eedom means and how his may a y
on a global le el. We will look a he ole o science and academic eedom om he
an age poin o a libe al concep ualiza ion o map wha kinds o a ia ions may exis and
o explo e whe e academic eedom ends. Second, and in ligh o hese a ia ions in
academic eedom concep ions and p ac ices, we wan o be e comp ehend he con-
es a ions o academic eedom ha o en p e-da e o accompany he cu ailmen o
academic eedom ha can be obse ed a di e en le els a ound he wo ld.
2
K Kinzelbach e al,Academic F eedom Index –Upda e 2023 (Be lin: FAU E langen-Nü nbe g and V-Dem
Ins i u e, 2023).
3
The e ms ‘academic’and ‘schola ’a e used in his special issue as sho hand e ms o all membe s o
academic s a (p o esso s, esea che s, lec u e s, e c.) in highe educa ion, hough we acknowledge ha he
e m ‘schola ’may e e o anyone who conduc s esea ch in line wi h scien i ic s anda ds and i espec i e o
a p o essional posi ion a a uni e si y o esea ch ins i u e.
4
LH T ibe & G Lukiano , eply by D Cole, ‘F ee Speech on Campus: An Exchange’,The New Yo k Re iew
o Books, 7 Ma ch 2024.
5
See, o example, he cases o Ka e Sang in he Uni ed Kingdom (S F ancis, ‘Michelle Donelan Told o Pay
Damages o Academic O e Hamas Claim’, BBC, 6 Ma ch 2024), o John Keane in Ge many (C Bu deau, ‘In
Ge many, Deba e Rages O e a S a e Policy o Suppo Is ael, No Ma e Wha ’,Cou house News Se ice,
5 Decembe 2023) o o s uden s and acul y a es ed a a ious p o es s, such as ha a he Uni e si y o
Pennsyl ania in May 2024 (‘S a emen o he AAUP-Penn Execu i e Commi ee on he Penn Adminis a-
ion’s Decision o A es S uden s and Facul y and he Uni e si y’s Imposi ion o Manda o y Lea es o
Absence on Six S uden s’,Academe Blog, 10 May 2024).
6
Fo example, he hea ings and in es iga ions by he US House Educa ion and Wo k o ce Commi ee
(I Mul ey, ‘The Time is Now o Resis Poli ical In e e ence’,AAUP Upda es, 8 Feb ua y 2024) o sugges ions
ha Ge man p o esso s who came ou in suppo o s uden p o es o s should be su eilled by he domes ic
in elligence se ice (F Kain e al, ‘Ve assungsschu z soll Uni-P o s übe wachen’,BILD, 10 May 2024).
14 K isz a Ko ács and Janika Spannagel
When app oaching ques ions o academic eedom, i is use ul o cla i y some e ms
commonly used in his deba e and how hey ela e o each o he , namely he eedom o
science, he igh o science, academic eedom, he au onomy o highe educa ion
ins i u ions and he eedom o scien i ic esea ch. Figu e 1 p o ides an o e iew o
how we unde s and and use hese concep s in his special issue. Acco dingly, he eedom
o science is an umb ella e m ha encompasses he igh o science, academic eedom,
he au onomy o highe educa ion ins i u ions and he eedom o scien i ic esea ch. The
igh o science is a human igh ha applies o e e y human being, ega dless o hei
s a us o aining, and i comp ises bo h he igh o sha e in he bene i s o scien i ic
disco e ies and he igh o eely engage in scien i ic esea ch, de ined as any hing ha ,
based on i s con en and me hods, can be seen as a se ious, sys ema ic endea ou o
disco e wha is ue.
7
Academic eedom, on he o he hand, is a p o essional eedom o hose who engage
in scien i ic ac i i y o highe educa ion eaching and who a e a ilia ed wi h a uni e si y
o o he highe educa ion o esea ch ins i u ion. I includes he eedom o scien i ic
esea ch (an o e lap wi h he igh o science, bu om a p o essional pe spec i e), he
eedom o highe educa ion eaching and he eedom o highe educa ion lea ning.
8
The au onomy o highe educa ion and esea ch ins i u ions, which encompasses bo h
Figu e 1. The eedom o science and i s elemen s.
Sou ce: Au ho s.
7
See, o example, A icle 15 o he In e na ional Co enan on Economic, Social and Cul u al Righ s. Fo
mo e on he igh o science, see Kinzelbach’s a icle in his special issue.
8
Mo e on he de ini ion and jus i ica ion o academic eedom, see, M Kumm, Academic F eedom in
Libe al Cons i u ional Democ acies: Jus i ica ions, Limi s, Tensions, and Con es a ions (Be lin: Clus e o
Excellence 2055, 2024), <h ps://www.sc ip s-be lin.eu/publica ions/wo king-pape -se ies/Wo king-Pape -
42-2024/index.h ml>.
Global Cons i u ionalism 15
he independence and he sel -go e nance o hese ins i u ions and ce ain p o essional
p i ileges such as enu e, is hus concep ually no a di ec pa o academic eedom bu
a he a unc ional condi ion o i s p o ec ion.
The eedom o scien i ic esea ch, in ou unde s anding, desc ibes he a ea whe e
academic eedom and he igh o science o e lap. While es ic ed o esea ch, i also
includes he igh o communica e scien i ic esul s o o he esea che s and o he public.
In his con ex , i is impo an o clea ly delinea e his eedom o scien i ic exchange and
dissemina ion om he eedom o speech: while he la e co e s anyone’s equal igh o
u e almos any hing, including i a ional ideas, un e lec ed opinions and alsehoods, he
o me is bound by he disciplina y s anda ds o me hodical esea ch and scien i ic
e i iabili y.
9
Academic eedom and sc ip s o science
When ying o unde s and he ex en o he eedom g an ed o academics, we need o ask
wha pu pose and ole hey a e hough o ul il and how hese a e mean o be achie ed.
As he a ious con ibu ions in his special issue highligh , a ia ions in he concep ion o
he ole and o ganiza ion o science in socie y may explain impo an nuances in he
unde s anding and p ac ice o academic eedom and i s legi ima e limi a ions. In his
special issue, we e e o ‘sc ip s o science’ o desc ibe such a ia ions. Sc ip s a e, mo e
gene ally, sha ed unde s andings abou he o ganiza ion o socie y exp essed in p esc ip-
i e and desc ip i e s a emen s on how a socie y ough o be and is. A ce ain g amma
links hese s a emen s and in eg a es hem in o a cohe en se .
10
The libe al sc ip
speci ically is buil a ound equal indi idual eedom –unde s ood as pe sonal au onomy
and sel -de e mina ion –as well as collec i e sel -de e mina ion.
11
The libe al sc ip o science espouses a ision o science and highe educa ion ha uses
c i ical hinking, se ious and sys ema ic inqui y, and knowledge ansmission o p o-
g essi ely u he ou unde s anding o he na u al wo ld and human a ai s o he
bene i o socie y’s collec i e sel -de e mina ion. Fo his sc ip o be libe al, howe e ,
academic eedom is o i al impo ance: while socie y can ha e legi ima e demands on
academia and science in e ms o hei ole in democ acy and as cul i a o s o c i ical
minds, as sol e s o socie al p oblems, and as gea wheels in he na ional economy and he
labou ma ke ,
12
i is o quin essen ial impo ance ha academia is la gely in con ol o
de ining such goals, and he means by which hey a e pu sued. As a consequence, he e is a
ce ain ension in he libe al sc ip o science be ween he (indi idual and collec i e) sel -
de e mina ion o academia and he collec i e sel -de e mina ion o socie y. The ela ion-
ship be ween he wo in he con ex o libe al socie ies, and how hey pull he libe al
science sc ip in di e en di ec ions, is schema ically depic ed in Figu e 2.
9
Fo mo e on he ela ionship be ween academic eedom and ee speech, see Ko ács’a icle in his special
issue.
10
TA Bö zel and M Zü n, Con es a ions o he Libe al Sc ip : A Resea ch P og am (Be lin: Clus e o
Excellence, 2020), <h ps://www.sc ip s-be lin.eu/publica ions/wo king-pape -se ies/Wo king-Pape -No-1-
2020/index.h ml>.
11
TA Bö zel and T Risse, The Libe al Sc ip Be ween Indi idual and Collec i e Sel -De e mina ion (Be lin:
Clus e o Excellence, 2023), <h ps://www.sc ip s-be lin.eu/publica ions/wo king-pape -se ies/Wo king-
Pape -26-2023/index.h ml>.
12
K Robe s Lye , I Saliba and J Spannagel, Uni e si y Au onomy Decline: Causes, Responses, and
Implica ions o Academic F eedom (London: Rou ledge, 2022) 14.
16 K isz a Ko ács and Janika Spannagel
The isualiza ion highligh s ha he libe al sc ip o science –and wi h i a libe al
no ion o academic eedom –is placed on a spec um be ween wo illibe al ex emes. On
he igh -hand side, i is dema ca ed by an illibe al sc ip o science ha emphasizes he
collec i e in e es o socie y o he de imen o he sel -de e mina ion o academia. I sees
science as ully subo dina e o poli ical and economic demands. The libe al science sc ip
de ies his ex e nal con ol by placing academia in cha ge o he de ini ion and pu sui o
such socie al objec i es. In o he wo ds, he scope o academic eedom canno be de ined
wi h e e ence o poli ical judgemen s abou whe he and o wha deg ee speci ic esea ch
o academic o ien a ions will in ac u he such poli ical o economic pu poses. On he
le -hand side, he libe al sc ip o science is dema ca ed by a e sion ha places no
cons ain s on academic eedom –which is also illibe al, as i emphasizes academic sel -
de e mina ion a he de imen o o he indi idual eedoms and/o clea ly de ined
compelling public in e es s. The same is ue o unlimi ed uni e si y au onomy, which
may e en in inge upon indi idual schola s’academic eedom.
13
In he libe al science sc ip , academic ins i u ional conside a ions can, o cou se, limi
he eedom o he indi idual esea che .
14
Academic ins i u ions a e ee o engage ‘in he
p o essionally compe en o ms o inqui y and eaching ha a e necessa y o he
ealiza ion o he social pu poses o he uni e si y’.
15
They ha e hei own in e es s
Figu e 2. The libe al science sc ip and i s bounda ies.
Sou ce: Au ho s.
13
Fo mo e on his, see Be nasconi’s a icle in his special issue.
14
J V ielink, P Lemmens, S Pa men ie and he LERU Wo king G oup on Human Righ s, ‘Academic
F eedom as a Fundamen al Righ ’(2011) 13 P ocedia Social and Beha io al Sciences 117.
15
R Pos , ‘The S uc u e o Academic F eedom’in B Donumani (ed) Academic F eedom A e Sep embe 11
(New Yo k: Zone Books, 2006) 64.
Global Cons i u ionalism 17
cons i u ed by hei pe spec i e and ho izons, and hey ha e he igh o choose scien i ic
opics and me hods. Howe e , i is c ucial o emphasize ha ‘a esea che may no be
o ced, agains his o he will o conscience, o esea ch a pa icula opic’.
16
The
ins i u ion has an obliga ion o espec he essence o esea ch au onomy. Ye his does
no mean ha he esea che is ee o esea ch any kind o opic hey choose independ-
en ly o hese ins i u ional conce ns. Academic eedom can legi ima ely be limi ed by
undamen al igh s and eedoms o o he s, by e hical conside a ions and by clea ly
de ined coun e ailing in e es s o he academic ins i u ion as well as clea ly de ined
coun e ailing public in e es s, like public heal h, p o ided he limi a ions a e necessa y
and na owly ailo ed o achie e such a compelling public in e es .
The speci ic es ic ions ha a e placed on academic eedom, as well as he p ocesses
h ough which such limi a ions a e de e mined, a y be ween socie ies –as do he ex en
o and he pa icula means o academia’s sel -de e mina ion. These a e he essen ial a eas
whe e we see a ia ions in he libe al science sc ip and, acco dingly, in he p ac ices and
limi a ions o he libe al no ion o academic eedom. Socie al demands o democ a ic
legi imacy, g ea e inclusi i y and economic iabili y c ea e ensions wi h he libe al
no ion o academic eedom on bo h ends o he spec um. These ensions a e no only
esol ed di e en ly ac oss socie ies, bu hey also o en lead o con es a ions ha , o a
ce ain ex en , a e in e nal o he libe al sc ip and ha can induce enego ia ions o he
legi ima e bounda ies o academic eedom and make hem e ol e wi h ime. Howe e ,
con es a ions can also be mo e a - eaching and cu o he co e o wha we conside
academic eedom o be.
Con es a ions and limi a ions o academic eedom
The way we use he e m ‘con es a ion’in his special issue ela es o con es a ions as
social p ac ices ha exp ess objec ions o a no m, i s in e p e a ion o applica ion. Fo
ins ance, uni e si ies in se e al Wes e n coun ies ace socie al p essu e o abolish s udies
ocused on ‘c i ical ace heo y’,‘pos colonialism’o ‘gende s udies’, wi h some ac o s
claiming ha hese disciplines unde mine he alues o libe al democ acy.
17
To ake
ano he example, some e hical ules o esea ch o speech codes on campuses ha e posed
a challenge o academic eedom.
18
Ma ke p essu es a e also p esen in libe al democ-
acies: uni e si ies ha e long been exposed o ma ke logic, and he comme cializa ion o
esea ch
19
has o some deg ee h ea ened he eedom o pu sue academic inqui y.
Mo eo e , cons ain s imposed by a ious na ional and sup ana ional esea ch unding
schemes ha e caused conce ns o academic ins i u ions.
20
16
V ielink e al. (n14) pa a 40.
17
Kumm (n8).
18
JC He manowicz, ‘In oduc ion. P oblems and Pe spec i es’in JC He manowicz (ed) Challenges o
Academic F eedom (Bal imo e, MD: John Hopkins Uni e si y P ess, 2021) 1, 6. G Ragone, ‘E hical Codes
and Speech Res ic ions: New Scena ios and Cons i u ional Challenges o F eedom o Teaching a Uni e si y –
he I alian Pe spec i e’in M Seckelmann e al., Academic F eedom Unde P essu e? (Be lin: Sp inge , 2021),217.
19
Ame ican uni e si ies ha e been mo e exposed o ma ke logics and compe i i e p essu es han
con inen al Eu opean coun ies, o ins ance. FO Rami ez, ‘Ame ican Leade ship in Ame ican Highe
Educa ion’manusc ip on ile wi h he au ho s. See also he s a emen o he B i ish Uni e si y and College
Union on academic eedom, Janua y 2009, <h ps://www.ucu.o g.uk/academic eedom>.
20
Ko ács explo es his issue in he con ibu ion o his special issue wi h ega d o gende -inclusi i y in
Eu opean esea ch unding.
18 K isz a Ko ács and Janika Spannagel
Con es a ions a e also p esen a he indi idual le el: schola s ha e been silenced by
uni e si y communi ies
21
o blocked om speaking in academia (de-pla o med)
22
because o hei allegedly mo ally o ensi e mino i y mo al o poli ical iews (wha some
ha e desc ibed as ‘cancel cul u e’).
23
Some s uden s ha e ad oca ed o ‘sa e spaces’in
uni e si ies by limi ing academic eedom in o de o be p o ec ed om ‘dis u bing
ideas’.
24
We unde s and hese con es a ions –up o a ce ain deg ee –as ‘libe al
con es a ions’since hey in oke o he co e componen s o he libe al sc ip ( ee speech,
non-disc imina ion, e c.) o jus i y c i icisms o he ways in which he academic eedom
no m is in e p e ed and applied.
25
The dis inc ion be ween ‘libe al con es a ions’and ‘illibe al con es a ions’is made on he
basis o bo h hei jus i ica ion and hei in ended e ec s: Con es a ions a e libe al o in e nal
o he libe al sc ip i hey con es speci ic p ac ices and bounda ies o academic eedom by
aising o he p inciples o he libe al sc ip (such as ee speech o equali y). They a e illibe al,
o ex e nal o he libe al sc ip , i hey con es he co e o he e y exis ence o academic
eedom –o i hey demand limi less academic eedom by ejec ing he e y idea o o he
elemen s cen al o he libe al sc ip . Wi hin libe al socie ies, an example o illibe al
con es a ions ha aim o limi he sel -de e mina ion o academia o a deg ee ha is
incompa ible wi h academic eedom is calls on lawmake s o he de- unding o gende
s udies.
26
An example o illibe al con es a ions ha demand unlimi ed academic eedom o
he de imen o collec i e sel -de e mina ion is indi idual an h opologis s who e use o
e u n human emains o Na i e Ame ican ibes, a guing ha ‘ epa ia ion o human
emains is a h ea o amassing scien i ic knowledge’.
27
These examples may also se e o
highligh ha , in libe al socie ies, he bounda ies be ween libe al and illibe al con es a ions
a e o en pa icula ly luid and con ingen o e ime.
A he same ime, illibe al con es a ions o academic eedom a e becoming an in eg al
pa o he sys em in con empo a y egimes acing democ a ic eg ession. These include
Hong Kong, Hunga y, India, I an, Mexico, Poland be ween 2015 and 2023, Russia,
21
J Saul, ‘Beyond Jus Silencing and Censo ship: A Call o Complexi y in Discussions o Academic F ee
Speech’in J Lackey (ed), Academic F eedom (Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2018) 119, 120. An example
whe e silencing academics is a s ake is he policing o he so-called ‘Islamo-le is ’ esea ch. T Pe oud,
‘Academic F eedom, he Republic and “Islamo-Le ism”’ Ve assungsblog, 6 No embe 2020, <h ps://
e assungsblog.de/academic- eedom- he- epublic-and-islamo-le ism>.
22
RM Simpson and A S ini asan, ‘No Pla o ming’, in J Lackey (ed), Academic F eedom (Ox o d: Ox o d
Uni e si y P ess, 2018) 186.
23
P No is, ‘Cancel Cul u e: My h o Reali y?’(2023) 71(1) Poli ical S udies 145. As Da id Cole ap ly pu s
i , cancel cul u e is ‘a“cul u e”o la gely p i a e in ole ance, no a sys em o o icial ep ession’. D Cole
‘Who’s Cancelling Whom?’,The New Yo k Re iew o Books, 8 Feb ua y 2024.
24
M Moody-Adams, ‘Is The e a “Sa e Space” o Academic F eedom?’in J Lackey (ed), Academic F eedom
(Ox o d: Ox o d Uni e si y P ess, 2018) 36, 37.
25
I should be no ed ha he concep o academic eedom can also be misused in libe al socie ies. The
sp eading o p o en alsehoods has been de ended by schola s in he name o academic eedom, e en i he
ci cula ed in o ma ion lacks academic me i . P obably he mos (in) amous example in his espec is he
de ence o Holocaus denie s’ igh o exp ess hei iews in he academic sphe e. C We ne , Pa ne s in Ha e:
Noam Chomsky and he Holocaus Denie s (Wa e: Wo dswo h, 1995).
26
See he call by he Na ional Associa ion o Schola s in he Uni ed S a es in D Randall, ‘De und Gende
S udies’,Minding he Campus, 6 Sep embe 2022, <h ps://www.minding hecampus.o g/2022/09/06/
de und-gende -s udies>.
27
See G Angele i, ‘An h opologis Opposed o Indigenous Repa ia ion Sues Uni e si y o Alleged
Th ea s o He F ee Speech’,The A Newspape , 27 Oc obe 2022, <h ps://www. hea newspape .
com/2022/10/27/elizabe h-weiss-an h opologis -san-jose-s a e-uni e si y-lawsui - eedom-speech>.
Global Cons i u ionalism 19
Tu key and Venezuela –s a es ha ank low o ha e ecen ly declined on he Academic
F eedom Index. The au oc a ic leade s o hese egimes end o p esen i al unde s and-
ings o science sc ip s by emphasizing he ole o uni e si ies in na ion-building
28
and
downplaying he o he poli ically in ol ed pu pose o he uni e si y: o encou age c i ical
hinking ha would co ec he misuse o powe and con es scien i ically in alid u h
claims.
29
A good example is he posi ion o he Law and Jus ice (PiS) Pa y, which uled
Poland be ween 2015 and 2023, on he ole o his o iog aphy: i s pu pose is o uni e he
na ion a he han ollow an academic, e idence-based discou se.
30
Illibe al ac o s o en label he con lic o e academic eedom be ween hem and ocal
suppo e s o libe al democ acy as a ‘cul u e wa ’(Kul u kamp ), in which hey signal
opposi ion o he mo al-cul u al ans o ma ion o libe al democ acies.
31
Calling i a
‘cul u e wa ’alludes o he abo emen ioned, la gely libe al con es a ions o e poli ical
co ec ness and campus speech codes. Howe e , a mo e app op ia e way o unde s and-
ing his phenomenon is o ega d hese con es a ions agains academic eedom as
symp oms o consequences o b oade con es a ions o he libe al sc ip . Wha au o-
c a ic poli icians p esen as ‘cul u e wa ’o en jus d aws a en ion away om c eeping
au oc acy.
32
The e is a u he impo an dis inc ion o be made be ween con es a ions and
limi a ions o academic eedom. Con es a ions a e p ima ily discu si e social and
poli ical ac s, which may o may no esul in de ac o limi a ions o he academic eedom
no m. Limi a ions o academic eedom can be jus i ied o unjus i ied and bo h jus i ied
and unjus i ied limi a ions can occu in libe al and illibe al egimes. Recen ly, schola s
ha e been subjec o a ge ed ha assmen in libe al democ acies: he e a e epo s o
se e e smea campaigns and o en iolen h ea s agains academics o exe cising hei
academic eedom
33
in ields such as gende ,
34
clima e,
35
ex emism
36
and human igh s
28
O en, hey do his by de eloping a cen alized pa allel academic sys em. J-A Dillabough and A Pe o,
‘New Decep ions: How Illibe alism is Hijacking he Uni e si y’,Uni e si y Wo ld News, 4 May 2024, <h ps://
www.uni e si ywo ldnews.com/pos .php?s o y=20240501143215958>.
29
M Igna ie and S Roch, Academic F eedom: The Global Challenge (Budapes : Cen al Eu opean
Uni e si y P ess, 2018). This phenomenon is mo e e iden in pos -colonial and pos -au ho i a ian se ings,
whe e new na ions eme ge o claim iden i ies supp essed by he o me ule s. EW Said, ‘Iden i y, Au ho i y
and F eedom: The Po en a e and he T a ele ’, in L Mena d (ed), The Fu u e o Academic F eedom (Chicago:
Uni e si y o Chicago P ess, 1996).
30
A Leszczynski, ‘The Pas as a Sou ce o E il: The Con o e sy O e His o y and His o ical Policy in
Poland’,The Cul u es o His o y Fo um, May 2016, <h ps://www.cul u es-o -his o y.uni-jena.de/poli ics/
he-con o e sy-o e -his o y-and-his o ical-policy-in-poland>.
31
Zs Enyedi, ‘Democ a ic Backsliding and Academic F eedom in Hunga y’(2018) 14(4) Pe spec i e on
Poli ics 1067.
32
KL Scheppele, ‘Wha Cul u e Wa s Hide’,Ve assungsblog, 19 May 2022, <h ps:// e assungsblog.de/
wha -cul u e-wa s-hide/, DOI: 10.17176/20220520-062111-0>.
33
See E Väli e onen and S Saikkonen, ‘F eedom o Exp ession Challenged: Scien is s’Pe spec i es on
Hidden Fo ms o Supp ession and Sel -censo ship’(2020) 46 Science, Technology, & Human Values 6.
34
J E ans, ‘The New Wa on Gende S udies’,The Con e sa ion, 6 Janua y 2019, <h ps:// hecon e sa
ion.com/ he-new-wa -on-gende -s udies-109109>.
35
L Hickman, ‘US Clima e Scien is s Recei e Ha e Mail Ba age in Wake o UEA, The Gua dian, 5 July
2010, <h ps://www. hegua dian.com/en i onmen /2010/jul/05/ha e-mail-clima ega e>.
36
V Funk, ‘Na ascha S obl und “Don Alphonso”: Kolumnis in e wäg , ech liche Sch i e einzulei en’,
F ank u e Rundschau, 12 Augus 2020, <h ps://www. .de/poli ik/als-wue de-ich-pe manen -in-den-
abg und-schauen-90016007.h ml>.
20 K isz a Ko ács and Janika Spannagel
