How activism can lead to termination - the end of the Yale University. Funny tax implications for getting quoted in the New York Times. About activist networks.
Interview by Steven Durel, published on towardfreedom.org
Interviews
Books
Joshua Frank revisiting the wrongful termination from Yale
4 Sept 2020
David Graeber is Gone: Revisiting His Wrongful Termination from Yale
Joshua Frank interviewed David Graeber in 2005. Yale did not renew the teaching contract of David Graeber giving no official reasons. Anything that was discussed in the senior faculty meeting was confidential. There were hints about the volume of publications, excessive international recognition and student support. But the fact is that David Graeber was the declared anarchist scholar. The renewal after the first three years went without problems. Everything changed after writing essays defending anarchism and taking part in activism against the IMF and G8. After a “warning” the contract was renewed for two years instead of four, but despite extra work during this period, the contract was not renewed in the end. It also had to do with revenge for supporting a student leading the Graduate Employees and Students Organization.
Faculty members of Yale are not allowed to unionise and even though David Graeber supported the principle, he had decided to keep his activism to New York. Normally political views do not matter in academia, at least not until one acts upon it. Anarchism, however, is about activism.