As first reported in the Telegraph, FSU member and University College London (UCL) academic Michelle Shipworth has been banned from teaching her own course, after a Chinese student complained that discussing modern slavery in China was too “provocative”. Incredibly, UCL sided with students who said they were “distressed” by her handling of the topic, and imposed a raft of restrictions on Michelle in order to ensure their courses remained “commercially viable” to Chinese students.
Michelle Shipworth is an Associate Professor at UCL’s Bartlett School of Environment, Energy and Resources, and has taught at the institution since 2009.
Michelle found herself under investigation after a seminar last October examining data from the Global Slavery Index 2014. The seminar forms part of her ‘Data Detectives’ training module, and is designed to prepare students for an assignment which external examiners have described as “particularly innovative” and “excellent”, and her Faculty’s teaching lead has previously stated is worthy of a teaching award.
This line of “argumentation” reminds strongly of reactionary US states and their recent bans on discussing slavery, racism and gender issues at schools.
If you think the conservative and reactionary politicians would stand against Chinas economic power, let this be a wakeup call. If there is money to be made with subjecting people to forced labor, political opression and inhumane living conditions, they will work together with governments like in China. If you think the step further, you will see this in a time, where the UK is shunend for enabling forced labor through denying victims of forced labor access to courts and protection and where “conservatives” in Germany suggest forced labor for asylum seekers at less than 7% of the minimum wage.
There is movements in the European “conservative” politics to enable and further exploitation and forced labor of immigrants and refugees. Talking about how the situation in China is specifically, how European companies are making nice profits with forced labor there, and how the proposed structures in Europe could bear many similiarities to China, is a danger to this “conservative” movement.
The current EU proposal for more strict regulation of imports from forced labour are mainly furthered by the parliament and the EPP group (conservatives) has voiced many criticisms, trying to water the regulation down.
I think we need a different word for ‘conservative’. Because you get liberal-ish, constitution-respecting conservatives, and then you get authoritarian, corrupt ‘conservatives’ – and those are two completely different things. I can give an example.
The students at Tiananmen square were a bit more stressed.
Yeah as they fucking lynched the soldiers
I think you got something mixed up.
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The propaganda outlet of the “Party for Socialism and Liberation” twists history in Chinas favor. Shocker. Defending Russias war in Ukraine too, of course
Despicable.
There is no war in ba sing se.
These accounts were true and well documented
Why didn’t they list any sources to vett their narrative then? I’d think that if it was well documented they would’ve linked the documents alongside the anti-China articles they listed in the footnotes.
The facts are there, it was the students lynching the soldiers. You can deflect from that all you want, it won’t change history.
That‘s really a ridiculous statement.
Last year there were reports about contracts that scholarship students from China had to sign. It’s not too far a stretch that students reported the professor for fear of repercussions based on such contracts.
https://www.dw.com/en/how-china-controls-its-top-students-in-germany/a-64901849
In Sweden, two universities cut ties with China over this:
Tens of Thousands of Students Pledge Loyalty to Beijing Before Arriving Abroad (January 2023)
Independent director and current affairs commentator Wang Longmeng said it is still worth understanding the practical meaning of phrases [in the students’ loyalty pledge agreements] like “serving your country” and “loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party,” even if the practice has been going on for years.
“The Western media have reported many cases of Chinese students and scholars stealing high-tech military technologies, and besieging protesters who supported Hong Kong’s anti-extradition protests,” Wang said. “A lot of people who have been awarded Chinese government scholarships to study abroad have basically been recruited by the state, and these agreements are the best proof of that.”
He likened the contracts to “selling one’s soul to the devil.”
“Their families are destined to become hostages,” he said. “Universities in democratic countries should refuse to cooperate with institutions like the China Scholarship Council, otherwise they will become accomplices in that hostage-taking.”
A student was distressed? Oh, poor little creature. Has to be handled with care, wrapped in cotton wool?
Grow up, student!
A complaining spoiled kid shielded from the truth is only the minor problem here. Her own university siding with this kid and putting commercial interest above academic freedom and accuracy in this spineless appeasing move is what makes me speechless.
True. Commercial interests should not have any place, in any university, in any shape and form.
I think older people - no offense - have no idea what a university is nowadays.
It’s about 40 years since I left university, and I’m afraid I do have a slight idea. And I don’t like it. At all.
If you know, you know. For all the others: It is not about academic virtues and studying and the pursuit of knowledge. It is about getting you ready for the job market and passing tests.
More so than 40 years ago, or even 20. In Germany, it is 25 years to be exact.
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IP itself is theft. Fuck IP.
There is a video on the issue (4 min)
