Notre Dame community reacts to statement from university president
Father Robert Dowd, C.S.C. released a “Statement on Freedom of Expression” on August 27, the first day of the 2024–2025 academic year. The communication—Fr. Dowd’s first official statement as president of the university—outlined a position on free inquiry in a university setting.
Echoing the language of last year’s “Freedom of Expression at Notre Dame,” a message from the office of then-president Fr. John Jenkins, the new statement evokes Notre Dame’s commitment “to the pursuit of truth through teaching, learning, inquiry, and dialogue” as the grounds for academic freedom at the university.
While upholding Notre Dame’s commitment to “students learning in accord with their obligations, vision, and interests,” the statement continues, “Some of the views expressed [in the community] may not be in accord with the principles of Catholic teaching or the values of the University, even as we ensure that Catholic views are represented on campus.” In response to views which contradict Catholic teaching or personal conviction, Fr. Dowd urges an attitude of “respect and charity.”
The statement was prefaced by an email sent to members of the Notre Dame community wherein Fr. Dowd reflected on the tension caused by wars in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan, among other countries, and the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
The statement elicited varied responses from students, alumni, and faculty of the university, ranging from opinions of high praise to those of reservation.
Sotirios Barber, professor of political philosophy and constitutional studies, expressed his support of the recent statement in a comment to the Rover. “I personally welcome this statement. … It treats academic freedom and free speech on campus as part of a truth-seeking process.”
He continued, “[The statement] implies that we are fallible and that we somehow either have an obligation to seek the truth or have an ingrained natural desire to quest for the truth, and that we do this through an exchange of ideas, some of which we’re quite uncomfortable with.”
Although he endorsed Fr. Dowd’s statement as a whole, Barber questioned its reference to the “Report of the Committee on Freedom of Expression” released by a panel at the University of Chicago in 2014. “The University of Chicago’s statement contains the word ‘truth’ zero times,” Barber said. “It appeals not to truth, but to tradition—nothing normative flows from tradition. There are competing traditions.”
Jakob Hansen, a sophomore studying political science and economics, voiced his agreement with Fr. Dowd’s call for Catholic charity when considering opposing viewpoints. “While we, as a university, are committed to the ideals of higher education and freedom of thought, our primary focus should be fostering civil dialogue in professional settings,” he told the Rover. “In this respect, the campus of a Catholic institution should not be a place for unrest or contempt. Rather, it should be a space where each student strives to be [his] ‘brother’s keeper’ and works toward a greater understanding of one another.”
“Freedom of Expression” has been an ongoing theme in recent years at Notre Dame.
Notre Dame’s Film, Television and Theatre (FTT) department controversially hosted a university-sanctioned drag show on November 3, 2023. In response to concerns from Notre Dame faculty and students regarding the show’s misalignment with Catholic teaching, the Office of the President referenced Fr. Jenkins’s original “Freedom of Expression at Notre Dame” release.
Holy Cross College sophomore Mataya Watson recalled the drag show in her reflection on the recent statement, saying to the Rover, “I wholeheartedly agree that college campuses are the perfect place for open discussions. I do not think it is in a Catholic institution’s best interest to affirm or promote opinions that do not align with Church teachings of truth, goodness and beauty.”
Watson continued, “When considering this, I am namely thinking of the drag show that happened last fall. I think it is really interesting because this is a time when students may have looked to the university as being proudly accepting and proudly open to hearing others opinions. At the same time, it was very obvious that this contradicted what the university and what the Catholic faith stands for in its view on gender.”
A graduate of the Notre Dame class of 1995 remarked to the Rover, “The statement released by Fr. Dowd is very positive. We have lost the ability to have healthy conversation and debate, and our society lacks complete freedom of expression. When it involves research, discourse, presentations, and matters of intellectual and cultural thought, freedom of expression is very good. When it references entertainment that is by its own nature intended to be antagonistic to the culture and nature of Notre Dame—which includes its Catholic identity—a line must be drawn.”
He clarified, “In other words, if a person wants to give an educational talk on controversial subjects, that is a dialogue and is welcomed. But when you try to host ‘the Vagina Monologues’ or a drag show, that is not dialogue but monologue.”
“I firmly believe that Fr. Dowd is on the right frame,” the alumnus continued. “Based on what I have seen in this short time, I think his leadership will be a refreshing move away from some of those caustic forms of entertainment we have seen here in the past.”
In the statement, Fr. Dowd also highlighted upcoming opportunities to exercise academic freedom of expression in this year’s annual Notre Dame Forum, titled “What Do We Owe Each Other?”
The Office of the President was unable to provide comment to the Rover.
Clare DiFranco, a transfer student on the housing waitlist, is a sophomore studying accounting and Italian. She is using her freedom of expression to plea for on-campus housing in Lyons Hall. Email cdifranc@nd.edu if you are able to help a dormless Domer.
Photo Credit: Steven Van Elk
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