[59][60] The lawsuit eventually ended with nearly $1 million in damages and fees awarded. [27] Former ACLU President Nadine Strossen is also an advisory board member. Lukianoff should be asked to acknowledge this at the Bard conference. Web the foundation for individual rights in education (fire) is an organization whose work concerns university students and faculty members the organization considers to have. The PEN report misses this broader context, conscientious though it is in distinguishing real threats to campus free speech from hyped and imagined ones. Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression aims to defend the fundamental rights of college students and faculty members while creating favorable resolutions for individuals facing campus disciplinary actions and those negatively impacted by a culture of censorship within higher education. [103][104], In February 2022, FIRE produced an advertisement featuring National Basketball Association (NBA) player Enes Kanter Freedom for the 2022 Winter Olympics in China, supporting freedom of speech. Its also donated nearly half a million dollars to the anti-LGBTQ hate group Alliance Defending Freedom. Once the ACLU backs off its traditional role, who else is there? Glasser asked. United States. The Charles Koch Institute, later formed as a separate organization from the foundation, bills itself as an organization specifically dedicated to educating the next generation of professional leaders with libertarian-minded internships and professional development courses. Turning Point USA is also closely affiliated with the dangerous citizen journalist vigilante work of James OKeefe and Project Veritas, and the group recently delved into its own warped citizen journalism project with the launch of a McCarthyist Professor Watchlist project in late 2016. It also operates a campus leadership program that identifies, organizes, and trains conservative college students to promote and defend their values on campus. The institutes national field program boasts more than 1,878 campus groups that advocate for limited government, the free market, traditional values, and national defense.. Right Wing Collectivism.pdf. All of these organizations stoke public anger against political correctness as a threat to academic freedom and to the free-market economy, which they insist would enhance it. No wonder theyre looking to scapegoat frightened students and deans. Those doctrines have themselves become dangerous to democracy via casino-style financing (Donald Trump, anyone? The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), formerly known as the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, is a non-profit civil liberties group founded in 1999 with the aim of protecting free speech rights on college campuses in the United States. Reports indicate that the Charles Koch Foundation is one of several Koch funding groups donating to universities and think tanks to forward their political goals and to build a talent pipeline of libertarian-minded students. The foundation supports free-market teachings at the university level, including by funding individual faculty positions. Kirby Foundation. As of August 2020, SPN's membership totals 162. "[24], Lukianoff co-wrote The New York Times bestselling book The Coddling of the American Mind with New York University Professor Jonathan Haidt, arguing that tribalism on college campuses is a "very serious problem for any democracy. +. FOUNDATION FOR INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS IN EDUCATION EIN 04-3467254 NTEE code info Censorship, Freedom of Speech and Press Issues (R63) Alliance/Advocacy Organizations (R01) Civil Rights, Advocacy for Specific Groups (R20) IRS filing requirement This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ. The Unite the Right rally they held ended with violence, including the death of a 32-year-old woman who was run over by a car driven by a far-right demonstrator whose friends said he was obsessed with Hitler. Copyright 2023 | The American Prospect, Inc. | All Rights Reserved, The Alt-Labor Chronicles: Americas Worker Centers, The Conservatives Behind the Campus Free Speech Crusade, What the Campus Free Speech Crusade Wont Say. [61], In 2014, FIRE sued Chicago State University (CSU) for trying to shut down a faculty blog critical of CSU's former administration. [14][third-party source needed] FIRE has been described as a competitor of the larger ACLU. It has created a vacuum in the viewpoint-neutral defense of free speech, which FIRE has filled.. [41][42][43][44], FIRE has argued for more rights for students facing sexual assault allegations. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression's (FIRE's) mission is to defend and sustain the individual rights of all Americans to free speech and free thoughtthe most essential . Foundation for Individual Rights in Education, Inc. Mission The mission of FIRE is to defend and sustain individual rights at America's colleges and universities. Lukianoff said FIRE has raised $28.5 million for a planned three-year, $75 million litigation, opinion research and public education campaign aimed at boosting and solidifying support for free-speech values. Here is what the Sourcewatch project of the Center for Media and Democracy has to say: "Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has deep ties to the Koch brothers. The public list of supposedly biased professors -- which included individuals photos and asked for public submissions of video/photo evidence of alleged bias -- mostly cited right-wing student reporter website Campus Reform, as well as conservative student blog The College Fix, hate group David Horowitz Freedom Center, The Blaze, FoxNews.com, and unfounded videos from Project Veritas. Part of the push may challenge the American Civil Liberties Unions primacy as a defender of free speech. [58], In 2012, FIRE filed a lawsuit against Iowa State University (ISU) after ISU prevented the university's chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws from designing T-shirts featuring the school's mascot. In truth, as I have argued, conservative political correctness doesnt need to shout as loudly as its progressive variant only because its already baked into every Economics 101 course and into the premises and protocols of career advancement that the larger society foists on undergraduates. The Charles Koch Foundation is the private philanthropic organization of oil billionaire Charles Koch. Top contributors to the David Horowitz Freedom Center include the right-wing Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation and anonymous conservative donors through DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund. He also has ties to the Trump administration, asProject Veritas has received funding from the Donald J. Trump Foundation. The Bill of Rights Institute, established in September 1999 by the Charles G. Koch Foundation, is a Virginia based nonprofit that promotes teaching a conservative interpretation of the Constitution. Here are some known contributors: Adolph Coors Foundation: $95,000 (2014-2018) Allan S Gordon Foundation: $10,000 (2017-2018) American Endowment Foundation: $36,377 (2016-2017) Glasser, who serves on a FIRE advisory board, said in an interview that he strongly encouraged FIRE to broaden its free-speech work in part because the ACLU seems to be abdicating that role. FIRE contends that since it debuted in 1999 it has won over 500 public victories for students and faculty members, secured 425 campus policy changes, and helped drive down the prevalence of highly-restrictive campus speech codes. In recent years, OKeefe has strongly aligned himself with the so-called alt-right, offering exclusives of his videos to Breitbart.com and befriending dangerous online trolls like Lucian Wintrich, Gavin McInnes, and Milo Yiannopoulos. Kirks group claims to have a presence on 1,000 college and high school campuses nationally. "[33], In 2007, the organization said that a mandatory program for students living in dormitories at the University of Delaware resembled "thought reform". [29] In April 2007, Jon B. Gould, an author and George Mason University faculty member, criticized FIRE's rating methods, claiming that FIRE had grossly exaggerated the prevalence of unconstitutional speech codes. After FIRE publicly criticized the decision, Garneau was reinstated. He has had to issue public apologies, has been arrested for trespassing, and has foiled his own plots, yet his videos have been promoted by President Donald Trump. By Barbara Miner. The ACLU faced internal upheaval in 2017 after its Virginia chapter provided legal assistance to white-nationalist groups seeking a permit to demonstrate in Charlottesville, Va. It also grants funding for education in small amounts, primarily to libertarian think tanks. But the ebb and flow of ideas cant be reduced to market exchanges, and has to transcend them. YAL also hosts an annual conference; the 2016 conference featured speakers includingformer Rep. Paul, Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI), and Fox News Andrew Napolitano. [45] In 2011, FIRE opposed the Education Department's "Dear Colleague" letter that urged universities to use a "preponderance of the evidence" standard instead of the criminal justice system's "beyond a reasonable doubt" standard in sexual assault cases. Lynum, whose conservative group was suspended by the schools president for circulating China kinda sus stickers promoting the theory that a Chinese government lab caused the oubreak of Covid-19. Kirby Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation operated by the wealthy Kirby family. After FIRE intervened, the university revised its practices to no longer require prior approval before interviews. Much like the ACLU, this often leads to them defending unpopular or controversial speech. [84][85] Emerson claimed the stickers represented "anti-China hate", while FIRE blamed the school for violating "freedom of expression". Lukianoff acknowledged disappointment with major liberal foundations, who have balked at supporting FIREs efforts. Maybe the Bard conferees will have better luck. Thank you! The ACLU enjoyed a massive surge in funding following Trumps victory in 2016 and now brings in almost $400 million to its coffers each year. [57] Charges were dropped in December 2011. When you support The American Prospect, youre supporting fellow readers who arent able to give, and countering the class system for information. 2012. [35], FIRE has opposed security fees some campuses charge to groups which host controversial speakers. He nearly missed getting his diploma", "Just kidding! Not only did FIRE secure more victories than ever, but it also succeeded in bringing liberty to thousands more students by welcoming Arizona State University and James Madison University to its list of
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