1619 project creator and NYT journo Nikole Hannah-Jones issued an ultimatum to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, saying through her lawyers that she will not accept a teach position at the university without being granted tenure:
Update: Nikole Hannah-Jones’ attys tell UNC she will not accept professorship under five-year contract: “Any appointment of Ms. Hannah-Jones without tenure is unacceptable.” full letter, as first reported by @NCPolicyWatch 👇🏽 https://t.co/jslhRd1fhq
— David Folkenflik (@davidfolkenflik) June 23, 2021
From the letter from her lawyers to the school: “[The trustees] want her to take the job under different and lesser conditions than her white predecessors did”:
Nikole Hannah-Jones won't join UNC without tenure, and lays out the legal arguments. Summed up well in this quote: "[The trustees] want her to take the job under different and lesser conditions than her white predecessors did."https://t.co/HF23xk2wcN
— Valerie A. Lewis, PhD (@valeriealewis) June 23, 2021
They also blamed a “powerful donor” for the move:
The journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones told the University of North Carolina that she will not join its faculty as planned unless she is granted tenure. A letter from her lawyers said an unnamed "powerful donor" had contributed to her tenure being denied. https://t.co/emZiNskMzX
— NYT Media (@nytmedia) June 23, 2021
This donor just happens to be Walter Hussman and the university named its journalism school after him. He was criticized earlier this year for going on Tucker Carlson’s show:
Tucker Carlson is getting dragged into the latest on UNC and Nikole Hannah-Jones https://t.co/lv9yfPYYzj
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) May 30, 2021
The school is also facing pressure from students to grant her tenure:
Student body President of UNC urges anyone from a marginalized group to m work or study somewhere other than UNC. https://t.co/3MhIG8SJAL
— Valerie A. Lewis, PhD (@valeriealewis) June 20, 2021
Your move, UNC.
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