A professor at the Duke University School of Medicine is under fire after he blasted a mandatory equity training as “Maoist political propaganda” and refused to attend.
Bryan Cullen, a professor of molecular genetics and microbiology, drew the ire of several doctoral students after he announced to his department that he would not take part in the medical school’s mandatory training put on by the Office of Institutional Equity, according to a report by the Duke Chronicle.
“My initial reaction is I refuse to engage in left-wing Maoist political propaganda workshops and, as a tenured faculty, that is my choice,” Cullen reportedly said in an email reply to the announcement of the training.
Several doctoral students included on the email chain quickly denounced Cullen, with one calling the professor out for “a history of xenophobic, homophobic and racist behavior.”
“Duke constantly talks about creating an inclusive environment but continues to support faculty members like this,” one student tweeted. “THIS IS NOT OKAY AT ALL! Transphobia, homophobia, xenophobia or ANY form of discrimination is never okay!”
Duke constantly talks about creating an inclusive environment but continues to support faculty members like this. THIS IS NOT OKAY AT ALL! Transphobia, homophobia, xenophobia or ANY form of discrimination is never okay! @DukeU @DukeMedSchool needs to act accordingly ASAP!
— AL (@bshwckplantdad)
Cullen is not the first professor at Duke to have generated controversy for refusing to attend a diversity and equity training session. In 2017, Paul Griffiths, a professor of Catholic theology at the university’s divinity school, similarly replied to a faculty email thread about a voluntary racial equity training to discourage colleagues from attending. Griffiths resigned from his position at the university in 2018.
* Article from: The Washington Examiner