Princeton University fires Joshua Katz, a tenured professor of classics, accused of having a consensual sexual relationship with an undergraduate student between 2006 and 2007, an act prohibited by university rules. During the first investigation he lied about what happened and was suspended. In between then and now, he wrote a scathing criticism of a letter signed by staff and students of Princeton University recommending a review of Princeton University’s race history; he went further by branding the student black justice league, a terrorist organisation. The student involved wrote the school about Professor Katz’s effort to discourage her from participating in the investigation and discouraging her from getting help for the distress the entire incident caused her.
This caused Princeton to reopen the investigation, and eventually fired Professor Katz. Professor Katz asked to resign but was denied that option. Professor Katz says he is very sad they would let him go, given how much of his life he had given to Princeton University.
I found this story particularly intriguing because friends of Professor Katz say that his firing was politically motivated because of his stance on free speech. Well free speech got him, didn’t it? Just like he publicly branded a black organisation terrorist, a term that could easily get one of those members hurt. Just like he openly criticised a request for Princeton to review its race history with a defence of free speech, even though we have seen that hate speech as free speech can precipitate violence.
It is poetic justice, that the young lady used her voice as freely as she was able to tell the truth of what this professor did to her, how he cruelly tried to prevent her from participating in an investigation of an action that was already known and especially from getting the mental health support she needed. It is justice that the Professor Katz used his written “voice” to defame a group of young black students seeking racial justice while in secret, he attempted to silence a young lady ensuring that she received no justice but inequity. Ironically, she would use the same format, her written “voice” to tell the story of Professor Katz. What is even more ironic, is that just as free hate speech hurts both the intended and even the unintended, Professor Katz found out he was fired via an email sent to his wife, you see free speech travels fast and touches many, when it is hate speech or an unfair thing it harms many. I hope that Professor Katz will see how information proliferates and leaves a trail, perhaps he can imagine the suffering of many blacks after the George Floyd murder and the aftermath racial tension. Perhaps he can see the latest murders in Buffalo NY that took the lives of many because of a buffoon that had nothing useful to do, no value to society but to murder others and I can go on and on with more like it. To him, it might not have been a big deal as he defends “free speech” and calls young people hateful names. Young people that could be his sons and daughters. Did he sit with them and chat with them to know what they are about? Did he care enough to look at the facts before he condemned balack activists in the midst of their pain. What kind of a person does that, a sadist! Someone who has done something egregious but assumes his wrong is not bad but doubles down on harming others for no reason at all but his biased view on race. He does not acknowledge that the young woman provided new information on what happened and his firing was because of what he did not what was done to him. More students may come forward or it might be an isolated incident, at this point only Professor Katz knows. I also want to add that people make really poor judgments and sometimes the consequences come much later and are bigger than anticipated, sometimes we get second and third and tenth chances to clean up.
Professor Katz’s moral failings or the breaking of Princeton rules are not the subject of my article. While doing everything to cover up is a natural response but inside of his natural response is a profile of an entitled man who gives no deference to others in their suffering!
Last week I wrote a piece titled ‘When a lie and evil collide you get white supremacy and racism‘. This is a classic example of how white supremacist act, they feel above the law.
- They believe that they can trip up many times but, in their minds, it is never as bad as whatever ideology they believe others have violated. So if they are in an affair, they can aggressively destroy the reputation of another person caught in the same thing like Newt Gingrich did.
- They can harm the hearts of anyone that stands in the way of their desired outcome like Professor Katz did to the young lady, to his colleagues and students that signed the letter asking Princeton to review its race practices. Remember that in the same breath that he talks about free speech he willfully denies the free speech of the black students’ justice league by branding them as a terrorist organisation and tried to prevent the young lady from telling the truth or getting help.
- They get angry when the consequences of their actions warrant an action contrary to their desire or when they fail to control the situation for their benefit. When this happens they blame the process and change the narrative. Schools hardly dismiss tenured professors because the process is not frivolous and, in most cases, require board approval like in the case of Katz. Since his firing he has gone on to state his anger about the process. He claims he did not break a government law like Title IX sexual harassment. Katz wants to change the narrative, he broke several school rules, serious enough to warrant a dismissal!
- They run to those that agree with them to find a voice that dismisses the central issue but starts a chorus on an unrelated issue to muddy the waters. Katz has run to the extremist outlets selling his story, claiming his firing was a blowback to his extremist views and his defence on free speech. This is not true because he would not brand an organisation as terrorist if he cared about free speech. He would not work to silence the young lady
- They are unrelenting, unrepentant, unremorseful about anything. Katz has not even once made an apology to the young lady or his family for what has transpired. While I am not a proponent for public apologies for private matters. but if you must speak about something that has become public, then speak with remorse, repentance, apology, and care.
- They tend to assume that the public is like them, incompatible with the truth and could care less about any issues outside of their desire to exclude many and benefit tremendously at the expense of others, in the attempt to hold power. Katz easily dismisses the affair by telling us the young lady was 21 and it was consensual, but he does not address how it affected her and how he suppressed her voice. He does not acknowledge that she sought to reopen it because of what it did to her. He does not care about her and he expects most to not care either. It is always about him
- They understand their elite status within the movement. They know the dog whistles that riseds above everything else within their evil movement. They can turn simple hearts astray with one word, with one brand, they can bring chaos because they never admit wrong, instead they start an unrighteous campaign. Katz knows that the extremist group will always welcome him because he is anti-black, defends racism and creates hostility for young black students. He knows he has passed the test and anything else he does, really does not matter. So he whistles and whistles, hoping the dogs come out, and they do, the big dogs and the little dogs
The point is we are surrounded by many dangerous people who have an ideology that they espouse with impunity. While everyone is entitled to their own opinions, they are not entitled to their facts. People in academic leadership ought to be those who can decipher wrong from right. They can be conservative or liberal, never extremist, because they must be just, they must care for all their students, seek to understand always and give their students and community a fair chance and shake. They must seek answers always, reach out to expand their horizons and reach in to access more depth. They must do their very best to be moral and above reproach and when they fail recognise the failure, change, seek help and be sober. They must never advise against the health and well being of their student or colleague. Integrity, leadership, truth, excellence, good character, good judgement, high standards of morality, humility and more must be dominant in their lifestyle. The thing is that for this to be they cannot be racist or white supremacist. Professor Katz so far has displaced none of these.
About Ngozi Bell
Take a listen to this podcast and get to know Ngozi Bell Say It Skillfully® OUR VOICES – Ngozi & Okezue Bell, Carpe Diem! Tuesday, April 5, 2022 (voiceamerica.com)
Inspiration, Hard Work, Innovation. These three foundational elements anchor Ngozi’s core belief that manifesting the extraordinary is always within reach. Inspired by her mother A.C.Obikwere, a scientist and author, she learned the privilege of living at the edge of important encounters and dedicating herself to robust and perpetual learning. Ngozi’s background is a combination of Physics, Engineering, Venture Capital/Private Equity, regulations, and business where she has managed over $1B in cumulative revenue. Ngozi is a speaker, storyteller, and writer on a diverse set of topics including AI, iDLT, ML, Signal Processing, iOT, women, entrepreneurship and more. She contributes regularly to VOA, has been a TEDx speaker and is published on tech and non-tech platforms. She is a champion of STEM, women, youth, art and the Africa we must engage. Ngozi is an adjunct professor of Physics and management with work
experience in Asia, Europe, Africa, Middle East, and North America. She is a founder of a number of a number of enterprises and host of the podcast Stem, Stocks and Stews (https://anchor.fm/stemstocksstews-podcast).
