Fealty doesn’t mean much without proof. Maybe that’s why LSU is spending all the time and money to “investigate” and litigate the absolute nothingburger of a law professor talking shit off the cuff in his own classroom. To recap, Ken Levy is a law professor at Louisiana State University who got ratted on by one of his students for dropping two F-bombs — one about the state governor and the other about President Trump. People have been forgiven for much greater sins. JD Vance went on a mini tirade about our Commander-in-Dementia Screenings being a Hitler-esque idiot and he’s Vice President, for god’s sake. But instead of telling the student to keep their nose in their notes instead of the professor’s business, the school punished Levy by suspending him from teaching. Court rulings have been hot potato-ing from Levy to LSU’s favor for a while now: the most recent development is in the school’s favor. The Advocate has coverage:
LSU is free to continue pursuing potential job action, including termination, against law professor Ken Levy, who was suspended from the classroom after making comments about President Donald Trump and Gov. Jeff Landry in front of students.
…
“Prof. Levy’s removal from the classroom was an interim decision made by LSU President (William) Tate that did not disturb Prof. Levy’s tenure rights, employment, or pay,” the panel concluded.
Hey man, I don’t know how not letting the guy teach his class isn’t disturbing his employment, but they’re the ones in robes, not me. Would it work the other way? Could the teachers at LSU remove themselves and similarly not disturb their employment expectations?
Levy’s lawyer complained that the panel seemed to skirt the most obvious issue with the school’s retaliation: what does this mean for free speech? I know that Trump bragged about putting an end to free speech because it was an inconvenience, but do public institutions really have carte blanche authority to kick out professors for sharing their (pretty innocuous) political opinions? And if tenured professors are on this tight of a leash, what protections are there for the schools’ students?
As important as the liberty litmus testing questions are, the most practical concern should be on the bottom line. Why the hell is the school funneling money to fight this? Is it just to virtue signal to Trump? Harvard pushed back against the administration and had to go to court to get the billions in federal funding that was already earmarked for them. Maybe going after Levy is a high-profile display of them obeying in advance. Whatever gets the coffers padded.
LSU Can Potentially Fire Law Professor For Trump, Landry Comments, Court Decides [The Advocate]
Earlier: The LSU Law School Professor Free Speech Hot Potato Saga Continues
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s . He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who is learning to swim, is interested in critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
The post Court Gives LSU Greenlight To Investigate Law Professor For Bad-Mouthing Our Supreme Leader appeared first on Above the Law.
Fealty doesn’t mean much without proof. Maybe that’s why LSU is spending all the time and money to “investigate” and litigate the absolute nothingburger of a law professor talking shit off the cuff in his own classroom. To recap, Ken Levy is a law professor at Louisiana State University who got ratted on by one of his students for dropping two F-bombs — one about the state governor and the other about President Trump. People have been forgiven for much greater sins. JD Vance went on a mini tirade about our Commander-in-Dementia Screenings being a Hitler-esque idiot and he’s Vice President, for god’s sake. But instead of telling the student to keep their nose in their notes instead of the professor’s business, the school punished Levy by suspending him from teaching. Court rulings have been hot potato-ing from Levy to LSU’s favor for a while now: the most recent development is in the school’s favor. The Advocate has coverage:
LSU is free to continue pursuing potential job action, including termination, against law professor Ken Levy, who was suspended from the classroom after making comments about President Donald Trump and Gov. Jeff Landry in front of students.
…
“Prof. Levy’s removal from the classroom was an interim decision made by LSU President (William) Tate that did not disturb Prof. Levy’s tenure rights, employment, or pay,” the panel concluded.
Hey man, I don’t know how not letting the guy teach his class isn’t disturbing his employment, but they’re the ones in robes, not me. Would it work the other way? Could the teachers at LSU remove themselves and similarly not disturb their employment expectations?
Levy’s lawyer complained that the panel seemed to skirt the most obvious issue with the school’s retaliation: what does this mean for free speech? I know that Trump bragged about putting an end to free speech because it was an inconvenience, but do public institutions really have carte blanche authority to kick out professors for sharing their (pretty innocuous) political opinions? And if tenured professors are on this tight of a leash, what protections are there for the schools’ students?
As important as the liberty litmus testing questions are, the most practical concern should be on the bottom line. Why the hell is the school funneling money to fight this? Is it just to virtue signal to Trump? Harvard pushed back against the administration and had to go to court to get the billions in federal funding that was already earmarked for them. Maybe going after Levy is a high-profile display of them obeying in advance. Whatever gets the coffers padded.
LSU Can Potentially Fire Law Professor For Trump, Landry Comments, Court Decides [The Advocate]
Earlier: The LSU Law School Professor Free Speech Hot Potato Saga Continues
Chris Williams became a social media manager and assistant editor for Above the Law in June 2021. Prior to joining the staff, he moonlighted as a minor Memelord™ in the Facebook group Law School Memes for Edgy T14s . He endured Missouri long enough to graduate from Washington University in St. Louis School of Law. He is a former boatbuilder who is learning to swim, is interested in critical race theory, philosophy, and humor, and has a love for cycling that occasionally annoys his peers. You can reach him by email at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and by tweet at @WritesForRent.
The post Court Gives LSU Greenlight To Investigate Law Professor For Bad-Mouthing Our Supreme Leader appeared first on Above the Law.
