Commentary
On Jan. 31, Dr. Michael Mahon, president of the University of Lethbridge, cancelled a talk that Dr. Frances Widdowson was scheduled to present. Like all scholars, Dr. Widdowson has nuanced views on many issues, and she was going to speak on “How Wok-ism Threatens Academic Freedom.”
Even though President Mahon had not listened to her argument, he nevertheless explained why he cancelled the talk: “We are committed to the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) of Canada. It is clear that the harm associated with this talk is an impediment to meaningful reconciliation.”
Given the title of Dr. Widdowson’s talk, this response seems like a non sequitur. Even so, in President Mahon’s mind, reconciliation between indigenous people and other Canadians depends on two conditions: 1) agreeing with all 94 calls to action in the TRC report; and 2) stopping people who may disagree from saying what they think, at least on the U of L campus….