The turning point of campus politics

After the last year racial unrest in US and Canadian universities, it seems that it was about time to start a larger discussion about the successes and failures of campus politics. Aimed to explain the current state of the art of academia beyond the high walls of universities, Campus Politics aims and succeeds to offer a balanced perspective on what was wrong and right with the philosophy that structured the campus everyday life in the last decades. 

In a way I was expecting more boldness in approaching strategies such as the downsides of 'political corectness' and left wing mindsets, but this is not the purpose of the book. Instead, it offers a basis for serious discussions, and possible reconsiderations in the future. First, you need to know the terms and conditions and the reality. For instance, contrary to the stereotype, there are more conservative teachers and students in the North American universities than expected, which can explain how, in fact, the 'politically corect' approach was not that successful, despite the predominance of this discourse in the public space. 

Many terms, such as freedom of speech - which isn't 'a license for professors to do whatever they want' - are sometimes misused and misunderstood, ant the race and gender equality is still an aim. In a way, academia is only one of the many environments a person is part thereof during a lifespan and as long as the other segments of the society ignore the need to consider seriously their admission and acceptance policies, universities are not (the only) responsible for the failure. 

Another merit of the book is to take into consideration the 'very hard to understand world' shaped by the challenges taking place after 9/11, and also mentions the anti-Israel bias that can be encountered in many high-end academic circles. 

As everything is in the making right now, with an unknown outcome, there is the responsibility of the students to offer a different approach. Instead of requesting the administration to take the needed measures, better they try to request and fight directly for their rights. 

Written in a very analytical way - without trying to be apologetical or over-critical, with many information about the history of campus politics, the book is a recommended read to both academics and students, and anyone interested to understand the current academic challenges in the USA. 

Disclaimer: Book offered by the publisher in exchange of an honest review

German university history: Lutherstadt Wittenberg

As a visitor in the city of Luther, it is hard to imagine nowadays how the city used to look like in the 16th century when the University was first created here. Most of the houses from what it is now the old city were used as accommodation for students from all over the German speaking area and even from abroad. On many houses, names of famous students are written on the front of the doors of what used to be their study homes. Among the famous visitors or students are Giordano Bruno, poet Martin Opitz or the first African student in Germany, Anton Wilhelm Arno, Schiller, Lessing and Goethe.

Compared to other university cities, the majority of studies here were dedicated to religious topics and hence, probably the streets were less lively then in Heidelberg, for instance. 

Shortly after the creation, the university turned into an important center of protestant reformation. In 1512, Luther himself took his PhD in theology and continued to be part of the university as teacher of Bible studies. In 1580, Augusteum was built, one of Germany's oldest university buildings.

Nowadays, the university from Wittenberg bears the name of Luther and is part of a consortium together with the University of Halle. The University from Halle is much younger, being created in 1694. The current structure is functioning since the 1930s. 

The Leucorea center in Wittenberg hosts seminars and various conferences on topics regarding theology or social sciences. This center was created in 1842/43, during the time when the university was closed during the Napoleonic Wars and currently hosts the foundation dedicated to academic studies.

Wittenberg is no more the very active university center that used to be, but it keeps the prestige of academic excellence and the memory of prestigious personalities that studied and taught here.