In Response to “Stanger and Callanan Talk Murray at Princeton"

Dear Campus Editorial Staff,

As a faculty member, I would like to respond to some mischaracterizations of campus life, and faculty relations in particular, that I noticed in last week’s Campus story on the talk Professors Allison Stanger and Keegan Callanan gave at Princeton University last month. I have worked with and/or am friends with colleagues in several departments/programs, including (but not limited to): Economics, ENAM, Biology, Film and Media Studies, Chemistry, Computer Science, Environmental Studies, GSFS, Sociology/Anthropology, Religion, Writing and Rhetoric, IGST, Spanish/Portuguese and Dance. The most cursory, but fair minded, glance at the faculty body will show that we are not, in fact, “ideologically homogeneous,” in sharp contrast to statements in the recent article “Stanger and Callanan Talk Murray at Princeton.” Attending even one faculty meeting should make that clear. We run the ideological gamut in my department as much as in the body as a whole. Second, as frustrated as we all sometimes get with the fact that there are (sometimes sharp) political, theoretical and intellectual disagreements within the body, we overwhelmingly do not dismiss each other’s scholarship as intellectually fraudulent, as that would be contrary to the goal of modesty with respect to our own intellectual powers and opinions as well as openness to considering contrary views.

Signed, 

Kemi Fuentes-George

Editor’s Note: This piece is a response to remarks made by Political Science Professors Allison Stanger and Keegan Callanan in the Oct.  25 article “Stanger and Callanan Talk Murray at Princeton,” which ran in last week’s issue of The Campus. Kemi Fuentes-George is an associate professor of Political Science at the college.