Over the last several months, you may have heard unsettling stories of the ongoing political skirmishes in far-off states like Wisconsin and Ohio. Particularly in Wisconsin, whose capital is home to a large university, students have played large roles on both sides of the ongoing protests.
There are many similarities between these states' situations and that in Rhode Island — including the firing of Providence teachers and the ubiquitous budget battles that form the undercurrent of political debate in most places. But the petty partisan wrangling in those states differs significantly from the relatively calm, civil and adult discussions going on here. Naturally, then, we wrote the dispute off as a national issue that had little direct relevance to students and professors at Brown.
So we were shocked and disappointed to read a report by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel last week that the Republican Party in Wisconsin was trying to access emails sent by William Cronon, a professor at the University of Wisconsin at Madison. Apparently, the party suspected the professor had violated university policy by using his official email to conduct political activities, though the key terms they were looking for — "Scott Walker," "recall" and "union," for example — highlight the contemporary, political nature of their curiosity. Invoking Wisconsin's robust freedom of information act, Wisconsin Republicans sought permission to root through every email Cronon had sent thus far in 2011. When asked why the party was making such inquiries, Mark Jefferson, its executive director, said simply "I don't have to give a reason," according to a March 26 New York Times article.
We were even more disturbed to discover this was not an isolated incident. According to a March 29 New York Times article, a partisan research group made similarly broad inquiries of numerous professors at several universities in Michigan. The group also refused to discuss its motives for filing the requests.
Because the groups seeking access to professors' emails have not explained in detail their reasoning for filing such requests, we cannot be sure of their exact rationale. Nevertheless, it does not seem far-fetched that this is "an attempt to intimidate or embarrass professors who are sympathetic to organized labor," a concern the New York Times reported hearing from several of the targeted professors.
We do not condone the inappropriate use of university resources by professors. If an individual thinks university policy is being broken, he or she should bring it up with the university, which can resolve the issue according to its usual, internal procedures. Seeking to exploit public record laws to trawl through a professor's emails is a gross violation of personal privacy and academic integrity. Happily, the University of Wisconsin refused to release many of Cronon's emails, citing these concerns. But it did read through the rest of his correspondence to determine that he had not violated any university policies, striking a balance between the public's right to know and the weighty, countervailing concerns.
We hope other universities confronted with a situation like this act in a similarly professional manner. We condemn any attempts to bully, harass or embarrass professors for partisan purposes. As a private institution, Brown should be exempt from most public requests for records. Still, we call on the University to remain vigilant. Academic freedom and personal privacy should yield only in the direst of circumstances.
Editorials are written by The Herald's editorial page board. Send comments to editorials(at)browndailyherald.com.
