Thank you for this petition.
(Associate Professor, Film and Media Studies, UCSB)
S
Sarah Lerner
10 years ago
United States
S
Sanchia deSouza
10 years ago
PhD student, Department of History, University of Toronto
J
Jayeeta Sharma
10 years ago
Associate Professor, History; University of Toronto
M
Milind Kumar Dange
10 years ago
I am from India and aged 52 years so I do have the credentials to comment. Be wary of the BJP and all the front organisations as their thoughts are very very undemocratic and have wrong notion of their intellectual capacity.
A
Anonymous
10 years ago
Their links to the extremist group in India is cause for concern.
S
Sovereign Tobe
10 years ago
We don't need such undue influence at UCI.
J
John D
10 years ago
I happenstance to see this petition in the course my web trolling and the content did seem of interest. Decided to research on the contentions of the petition vis-a-vis the parties in question resulting in a lucid understanding of politics behind this petition backed sadly by some members of the faculty of the UCI. Out of curiosity for the views of the opposite side, in this case the Dharma Civilization Foundation came across very intellectual and succinct response in the form of a blog written by Kalyan, who appears from his writing learned and thorough in understanding of the aims and objectives of his foundation. His blog does not seem to reflect any kind malice or misgivings of the “Controversy” (my usage) attached to the gift of DCF, instead conveys a clear purpose on compliance with ethos of gift giving in academia. The apt title of the blog “Tempest in a teapot” comprehensively summarizes the stir caused or ignited by select few for reasons best known to them unrelated to the issues raised in the petition. Trust reading the response (If it could be called so) would allow for the unbiased supporters of this petition to reconsider their apprehensions. The blog can be read at link http://www.dcfusa.org/tempest-in-a-teapot-3/
U
Umang Kumar
10 years ago
Knowing this for what it is (sanatana dharma etc)...we must stand against this well-planned strategy which has its genesis...if nothing else, in a shoe-throwing incident several years ago...gilded shoes are being flung now...
D
dina al-kasim
10 years ago
Donors should not have authority to dictate research chairs, hires, or kinds of research. South Asian specialists at UCI and their students were not a part of this process.
A
Anonymous
10 years ago
UCI Alumni, Comparative Literature and History
Z
Zaheer Abbas
10 years ago
Graduate student, UNC-Chapel Hill (Dept of History)
This is exactly the kind of Trojan Horse gift that should make a public university such as UCI extremely wary. Gifts that are given for politically and ideologically, not to say, religiously, motivated reasons do not generally foster the university's mission to promote open, free discourse on opposing views and perspectives.
J
Jyotsna Kapur
10 years ago
Thank you UCI faculty and students for resisting the dangerous wave of selling education to the most moneyed and violent.
C
Chau Kelly
10 years ago
Restore state funding to the University of California and stop pandering to the special interests who want to dictate who can teach and the curricula. Faculty should be hired according to their expertise, not their personal beliefs or cultural background.
J
John Culbert
10 years ago
Restore public funding to the UCs, or moneyed interests will dictate the curricula.
C
Christian Wedemeyer
10 years ago
As an outsider, I sign this hesitantly, but if the allegations are true, they are disturbing, if not at all surprising. The only possible approach for an Administration is to graciously accept the money with *absolutely no* strings attached. Otherwise, it must be returned.
J
javed majeed
10 years ago
Featured
Indian civilisation is too valuable to be hijacked by religious ideologies distorting and denying its complexity. Universities have to be aware of the dangers of financial "gifts" giving donors influence over hiring, teaching, and research; we need the spaces universities provide for critical thinking more than ever now.
K
Kerri McCanna
10 years ago
Public education must not be beholden to religious interests.
Thank you for this petition. (Associate Professor, Film and Media Studies, UCSB)
United States
PhD student, Department of History, University of Toronto
Associate Professor, History; University of Toronto
I am from India and aged 52 years so I do have the credentials to comment. Be wary of the BJP and all the front organisations as their thoughts are very very undemocratic and have wrong notion of their intellectual capacity.
Their links to the extremist group in India is cause for concern.
We don't need such undue influence at UCI.
I happenstance to see this petition in the course my web trolling and the content did seem of interest. Decided to research on the contentions of the petition vis-a-vis the parties in question resulting in a lucid understanding of politics behind this petition backed sadly by some members of the faculty of the UCI. Out of curiosity for the views of the opposite side, in this case the Dharma Civilization Foundation came across very intellectual and succinct response in the form of a blog written by Kalyan, who appears from his writing learned and thorough in understanding of the aims and objectives of his foundation. His blog does not seem to reflect any kind malice or misgivings of the “Controversy” (my usage) attached to the gift of DCF, instead conveys a clear purpose on compliance with ethos of gift giving in academia. The apt title of the blog “Tempest in a teapot” comprehensively summarizes the stir caused or ignited by select few for reasons best known to them unrelated to the issues raised in the petition. Trust reading the response (If it could be called so) would allow for the unbiased supporters of this petition to reconsider their apprehensions. The blog can be read at link http://www.dcfusa.org/tempest-in-a-teapot-3/
Knowing this for what it is (sanatana dharma etc)...we must stand against this well-planned strategy which has its genesis...if nothing else, in a shoe-throwing incident several years ago...gilded shoes are being flung now...
Donors should not have authority to dictate research chairs, hires, or kinds of research. South Asian specialists at UCI and their students were not a part of this process.
UCI Alumni, Comparative Literature and History
Graduate student, UNC-Chapel Hill (Dept of History)
https://www.myind.net/steer-discourse-hindu-studies-western-academia
This is exactly the kind of Trojan Horse gift that should make a public university such as UCI extremely wary. Gifts that are given for politically and ideologically, not to say, religiously, motivated reasons do not generally foster the university's mission to promote open, free discourse on opposing views and perspectives.
Thank you UCI faculty and students for resisting the dangerous wave of selling education to the most moneyed and violent.
Restore state funding to the University of California and stop pandering to the special interests who want to dictate who can teach and the curricula. Faculty should be hired according to their expertise, not their personal beliefs or cultural background.
Restore public funding to the UCs, or moneyed interests will dictate the curricula.
As an outsider, I sign this hesitantly, but if the allegations are true, they are disturbing, if not at all surprising. The only possible approach for an Administration is to graciously accept the money with *absolutely no* strings attached. Otherwise, it must be returned.
Indian civilisation is too valuable to be hijacked by religious ideologies distorting and denying its complexity. Universities have to be aware of the dangers of financial "gifts" giving donors influence over hiring, teaching, and research; we need the spaces universities provide for critical thinking more than ever now.
Public education must not be beholden to religious interests.