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Reposted by Thomas M. Keck

Jonathan Urquhart @jonathanurquhart.bsky.social · 2h

"The irony was not lost on the faculty: The university was censoring its own conference about censorship."

Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5h

Weber State administrators told student they couldn't present their research on the state's anti-DEI law at an on-campus conference on censorship(!) unless they removed all mentions of DEI from their slides

www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

Weber State Censors, Then Cancels, Censorship Conference

University officials said that several planned presentations violated a Utah state law banning diversity, equity and inclusion at public universities.

www.insidehighered.com

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Reposted by Thomas M. Keck

Carly Goodman @carlygoodman.bsky.social · 2h

I don’t think having been alive in the 20th century is like Amazing or anything, but I am trying to communicate to young people that the present regimes of surveillance and control haven’t always operated so extensively; privacy and free expression are worth fighting for, if we can imagine them

Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5h

Weber State administrators told student they couldn't present their research on the state's anti-DEI law at an on-campus conference on censorship(!) unless they removed all mentions of DEI from their slides

www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

Weber State Censors, Then Cancels, Censorship Conference

University officials said that several planned presentations violated a Utah state law banning diversity, equity and inclusion at public universities.

www.insidehighered.com

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5h

I should note here that the source of the problem is Utah's egregious anti-DEI law, which has left campus administrators with few good options in these circumstances

screenshot of this passage from the article linked in original post:
In a note to conference presenters and volunteers last week, Vice President for Student Access and Success Jessica Oyler explained that Unity Conference programming could not discuss what HB 261 defines as “prohibited discriminatory practice,” including “claiming that sociopolitical structures are inherently power struggles between groups, or suggesting that individuals are inherently privileged, oppressed, racist, sexist, or victims based on personal identity characteristics.”

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5h

This shit is getting beyond parody. The director of the university's "Basic Needs Center" is vetting individual students' slides in advance of public presentations!?! The event formerly known as the Diversity Conference is now called the "Unity Conference"!?!

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5h

Weber State administrators told student they couldn't present their research on the state's anti-DEI law at an on-campus conference on censorship(!) unless they removed all mentions of DEI from their slides

www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty...

Weber State Censors, Then Cancels, Censorship Conference

University officials said that several planned presentations violated a Utah state law banning diversity, equity and inclusion at public universities.

www.insidehighered.com

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 1d

If Allen’s call falls on deaf ears, maybe all 9 schools tell the administration to eff off. But more likely, I think, is that Texas, Vanderbilt, and maybe others negotiate for themselves alone and then sign the deal. If Allen can persuade them to stick together, that seems like a good thing

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 1d

Agreed. But the administration put them together and asked for feedback, and I’m reading Allen’s piece as an effort to persuade universities to highjack this request by responding collectively. I’m not optimistic, but it seems worth a try

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 1d

Judge Young also finds that the chilling effect was amplified by the gratuitously terrifying ways in which the immigration detentions were conducted. (And yes, I'm still making my way through this opinion from last week)

screenshot of judicial opinion with highlighted text:
"... but also by the manner in which these arrests,
detentions, and revocations have been conducted: by often-masked
agents, without prior notice of visa revocation or altered
status, sometimes on the street or at immigration appointments,
followed by conveyance quickly out of district and across the
country."

another screenshot of judicial opinion, featuring this passage:
"Or why, having observed the first arrests that were made under this policy and seen that these arrests by these agents involved an obvious, highly publicized atmosphere of secrecy and fright, the Public Officials responsible for it did not adjust the policy to make the arrests less obviously chilling? Or why the members of the inter-agency advisory council whom the Public Officials will not name, did not adjust the policy to make the arrests less obviously chilling?"

third screenshot:
"this Court must draw the most reasonable inference: that the manner and method of their execution was adopted, or at least approved of once the first such arrest had been made, in part intentionally to chill the speech of other would be pro-Palestine and anti-Israel speakers, including Plaintiffs’ noncitizen members."

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 1d

The compact is garbage & I disagree with some of the planks Allen finds to be acceptable starting points. But I still think folks are misreading the main point of her piece, which is to encourage universities to highjack the compact as an opportunity to negotiate collectively w the administration

Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 2d

I’m only halfway through but I’m reading Allen’s piece mostly as a call for Texas and Vanderbilt to stay allied with the rest of the sector, rather than going it alone. I’m not optimistic, but if they actually could get the administration to negotiate with a united front, seems maybe worth a try

Mary Lewis @profmarylewis.bsky.social · 2d

Danielle Allen has proposed many good things for Harvard, so I’m puzzled by her reading of the word “compact” here, as if this would be an agreement freely entered into. She rightly says that, as written, this shouldn’t be agreed to. Maybe leave it there? therenovator.substack.com/p/why-im-exc...

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 1d

bsky.app/profile/tmks...

Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 3d

This is great reporting from @mbreidenbach.bsky.social on recent immigration case at the federal district court in Syracuse

www.syracuse.com/news/2025/10...

Michelle Breidenbach (@mbreidenbach.bsky.social)

Reporter at The Post-Standard and Syracuse.com. Runner. Soup maker. Cat photographer.

mbreidenbach.bsky.social

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 2d

I’m only halfway through but I’m reading Allen’s piece mostly as a call for Texas and Vanderbilt to stay allied with the rest of the sector, rather than going it alone. I’m not optimistic, but if they actually could get the administration to negotiate with a united front, seems maybe worth a try

Mary Lewis @profmarylewis.bsky.social · 2d

Danielle Allen has proposed many good things for Harvard, so I’m puzzled by her reading of the word “compact” here, as if this would be an agreement freely entered into. She rightly says that, as written, this shouldn’t be agreed to. Maybe leave it there? therenovator.substack.com/p/why-im-exc...

Why I’m Excited About the White House’s Proposal for a Higher Ed Compact

Now we have a chance for collective action

therenovator.substack.com

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Reposted by Thomas M. Keck

Joseph Rezek @rezekjoe.bsky.social · 2d

ACLS statement against White House “compact”: THIS IS SOVIET SHIT

Screenshot from statement “Universities and colleges have one mission: to advance knowledge. Faculty carry out the mission by conducting research and teaching students. The knowledge they produce and circulate is independently assessed by professional peers. Interfering with that process by forcing knowledge to pass through a political filter is a tactic adopted by the Soviet Union and other authoritarian states. The White House is dressing up its compact as a reasonable corrective to what it views as problems in campus culture. Let no one be deceived. This proposal imposes government censorship on academia. It is anti-American, and it weakens our democracy by devaluing academic expertise.”

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Reposted by Thomas M. Keck

Association of University Presses @aupresses.bsky.social · 2d

All are invited to the first in Publishing with University Presses Webinar Series, "Turning Your Dissertation into a Book," Oct 9 at 1pm ET. Organized by our Faculty Outreach Committee with the Rutgers Ctr for Minority Serving Institutions.

Register here: https://buff.ly/UiOAr5M

Turning You Dissertation into a Book webinar promotional tile

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Reposted by Thomas M. Keck

Indivisible Onondaga County @indivisibleononcty.bsky.social · 3d

Everyone please try to get this article in front of as many CNY peeps as you can

Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 3d

This is great reporting from @mbreidenbach.bsky.social on recent immigration case at the federal district court in Syracuse

www.syracuse.com/news/2025/10...

Michelle Breidenbach (@mbreidenbach.bsky.social)

Reporter at The Post-Standard and Syracuse.com. Runner. Soup maker. Cat photographer.

mbreidenbach.bsky.social

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 3d

This is great reporting from @mbreidenbach.bsky.social on recent immigration case at the federal district court in Syracuse

www.syracuse.com/news/2025/10...

Michelle Breidenbach (@mbreidenbach.bsky.social)

Reporter at The Post-Standard and Syracuse.com. Runner. Soup maker. Cat photographer.

mbreidenbach.bsky.social

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 4d

Judge Young's opinion also does a nice job of laying out the concrete chilling effect of the administration's policies on students and faculty engaged in pro-Palestinian teaching and research

screenshot of judicial opinion with this text highlighted:
Trump that Khalil’s arrest would be one of “many,” led her to
alter international travel plans and to contact an immigration
lawyer to track her travel abroad, to decline a public-facing
leadership opportunity that might have more firmly associated
her with pro-Palestine human rights advocacy, to cease her
previous practice of signing open letters related to these
issues, to forego specific research projects.

highlighted text:
Professor Megan Hysaka, an AAUP member and lawful permanent
resident, has previously published a paper discussing media
treatment of the Israel-Palestine conflict, regularly attended
pro-Palestine protests including student encampments, and signed
an open letter in support of pro-Palestine student protests.
Trial Tr. vol. I, 36:1-5, 36:18-19, 55:9-16, Jul. 7, 2025.
Now,
in response to the arrests and several social media posts by the
Public Officials, she has cut back on these activities and,
among other things, refrained from publishing a specific op-ed
that she drafted in response to Öztürk’s arrest, out of fear
that the enforcement policy would be applied to her in the same
way that it was to Öztürk.

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5d

Kicking off now

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5d

Looking forward to this conversation with @jamellebouie.net and @robmickey.bsky.social, getting started soon here at the Maxwell School

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 5d

I think about this more or less daily

rev. howard arson @theophite.bsky.social · 6d

it makes me incandescently furious that roberts invented the idea of banning coercive conditions on funding to kill medicaid expansion and refuses to do a single thing about the fact that the trump administration's entire deal is "coercive conditions on funding"

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 6d

Trump Administration trying to coerce universities to adopt strict, departmental-level institutional neutrality policies.

I hope even supporters of such policies will oppose this move. It’s flatly inconsistent with the institutional autonomy that is essential to academic freedom

Heidi Kitrosser @heidikitrosser.bsky.social · 6d

A steadfast commitment to rigorous and meritocratic selection based on objective and measurable criteria in the appointment process is pivotal for the University’s sustained excellence. Consistent with the requirements of Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts and other federal employment discrimination statutes, no factor such as sex, ethnicity, race, national origin, disability, or religion shall be considered in any decision related to the appointment, advancement, or reappointment of academic, administrative, or support staff at any level, except as described in section 9 or otherwise provided by Title VII or other federal employment discrimination statutes.
4 - INSTITUTIONAL NEUTRALITY
Signatories shall maintain institutional neutrality at all levels of their administration. This requires policies that all university employees, in their capacity as university representatives, will abstain from actions or speech relating to societal and political events except in cases in which external events have a direct impact upon the university.
Policies requiring institutional neutrality must apply with equal force to all of the university’s academic units, including all colleges, faculties, schools, departments, programs, centers, and institutes.

(footnote omitted for character limits)

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 6d

I brought kugel.

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 7d

Judge Young has a footnote questioning the widespread use of masks by agents undertaking immigration enforcement actions

Text of footnote 29:
Even crediting this concern, whether intentional or not,
images of plain-clothed, masked federal agents –- faceless
agents of the federal government –- snatching a non-violent
person off the streets of Boston has caused fear in citizens and
non-citizens alike. While there are of course occasions when
obscuring identities of agents is necessary, law enforcement in
the United States has usually been performed in the open. Days
after the trial, Defendant Todd Lyons stated in an interview
that he is “not a proponent of the masks,” but permits mask
wearing because he is concerned about agents’ safety.

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 7d

It was crazy enough when SCOTUS said license plates were government speech. But all books in a school library!?!

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 7d

Judge Young also quotes from this wild NPR interview with Deputy Sec. Edgar.

Edgar repeatedly describes Mahmoud Khalil as a terrorist & Hamas supporter, repeatedly refuses to answer direct questions about _what Khalil actually did_, then resorts to Kavanaugh-level attacks against the questioner

Edgar: Well, like I said, when you apply for a
visa, you go through the process to be able to say
that you're here on a student visa, that doesn't
afford you all the rights of coming in and basically
going through this process, agitating and supporting
Hamas. So, at this point, yeah, the Secretary of
State and the State Department maintains the right to
revoke the visa, and that's what they've done.
Martin: How did he support Hamas? Exactly what
did he do?
Edgar: Well, I think you can see it on TV, right?
This is somebody that we've invited and allowed the
student to come into the country, and he's put himself
in the middle of the process of basically proPalestinian activity. And at this point, like I said,
the Secretary of State can review his visa process at
any point and revoke it.
Martin: He's a permanent resident. He's not a
visa holder. He's a legal permanent resident. He has
the green card, at least he did, until it's alleged
that it was revoked.
If the allegation is that Mr. Khalil organized
protests and made speeches after which other people
engaged in prohibited activity, or, say, violent
activity. Well, Mr. Trump gave a political speech on
January 6, 2021, after which some individuals engaged
in violent and illegal acts. How is this any
different?

Edgar: President Trump's a citizen and the
president of the United States. This is a person that
came in under a visa. And again, the secretary of
state at any point can take a look and evaluate that
visa and decide if they want to revoke it.
Martin: He's a legal permanent resident. I have
to keep insisting on that. He is a legal permanent
resident. So what is the standard? Is any criticism
of the Israeli government a deportable offense?
Edgar: Like I said, I think that at this point
when he entered into the country on a student visa, at
any point we can go through and evaluate what his
status is.
Martin: Is any criticism of the United States
government a deportable offense?
Edgar: Like I said, if you go through the process
and you're a student and you're here on a visa and you
go through it, at any point . . . .
Martin: Is any criticism of the government a
deportable offense?
Edgar: Let me put it this way, Michel, imagine
if he came in and filled out the form and said, “I
want a student visa.” They asked him, “What are you
going to do here?” And he says, “I'm going to go and
protest.” We would have never let him into the
country.

Martin: Is protesting a deportable offense?
Edgar: You're focused on protests. I'm focused
on the visa process. He went through a legal process
. . . .
Martin: Are you saying he lied on his
application? He's a lawful permanent resident,
married to an American citizen.
Edgar: I think if he would have declared he's a
terrorist, we would have never let him in.
Case 1:25-cv-10685-WGY Document 261 Filed 09/30/25 Page 47 of 161
[48]
Martin: And what did he engage in that
constitutes terrorist activity?
Edgar: I mean, Michel, have you watched it on
TV? It's pretty clear.
Michel: No, it isn't. Well, explain it to those
of us who have not or perhaps others have not. What
exactly did you do?
Edgar: Well, I think it's clear or we wouldn't
be talking about it. I mean, the reality is that if
you watch and see what he's done on the university

Edgar: Well, I think it's clear or we wouldn't
be talking about it. I mean, the reality is that if
you watch and see what he's done on the university . .
. .
Martin: Do you not know? Are you telling us that
you're not aware?
Edgar: I find it interesting that you're not
aware.
Martin: I think you could explain it to us. I
think others would like to know exactly what the
offenses are, what the propaganda was that you allege,
what the activity was that you allege. Well, perhaps
we can talk again and you can give us more details
about this. We really appreciate your coming to join
us, and we do hope we'll talk again.
Edgar: Thank you.
March 12, 2025 Interview, NPR, (emphasis added), Ex. 29,
Stipulation No. 7.

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Thomas M. Keck @tmksyracuse.bsky.social · 8d

Among other things, Judge Young finds that DHS pulled agents off of various counter-intelligence duties to review 5,000 names listed on Canary Mission

screenshot of judicial opinion with highlighted text: Due to the workload, the requirement to review all 5,000
individuals on the Canary Mission Website, the assembly of the
Tiger Team required analysts be taken off of the
“Counterintelligence Unit, the Counterterrorism Intelligence
Unit, from the Cyber Intelligence Unit, from the Global Trade
Intelligence Unit, from all different parts of HSI
intelligence.”

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