Free Speech Commission issues its findings

Chancellor Carol Christ sent this message to the UC Berkeley community today: 

Dear campus community,

I am delighted to share with you the report of the Free Speech Commission. As you’ll recall, I appointed the commission in the wake of events last fall which resulted in significant disruption to the campus and challenged our values as a community. The commission consisted of equal representation of students, staff and faculty members, and was most ably chaired by Prudence Carter, dean of the Graduate School of Education, and R. Jay Wallace, professor of philosophy.

The commission met over the course of several months, welcomed testimony from the community at three public hearings, engaged with key internal and external stakeholders, considered a voluminous amount of background materials, and wrestled with some of the most important and complex issues facing our campus at this time.

The commission’s recommendations are deeply considered and intriguing, and I support them. I will work with my leadership team to determine what is feasible for us to carry forward over the course of the next weeks and months.

I invite you to read the report and to join with me in working to make our campus one that is tolerant of diverse thought and ideas, welcoming to people of all backgrounds and reflective of our shared passion for critical inquiry, debate and discovery.

Sincerely,

Carol Christ
Chancellor