Statement on Academic Freedom & Inclusivity

On March 10, 2014, the South Carolina House of Representatives voted in favor of a budget that cuts $52,000 from the College of Charleston’s appropriations, as punishment for the College’s adoption of Alison Bechdel’s memoir Fun Home. The College of Charleston English Department condemns this action as an attempt to censor future assigned or recommended reading material, thus violating the principle of academic freedom. Furthermore, we condemn this attempt to punish the College for choosing a book that focuses on the experiences of lesbian and gay people.

Read the Tim Carens’s editorial from the Post and Courier here.