University responds

Re: The cost of free speech at McGill and McGill principal denies rumours of political heat, March 24 McGill did not fail to defend the academic freedom of Professor Andrew Potter, who resigned from his position as Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada ( MISC). Moreover, rumours of external pressure on McGill University are untrue.

Academic freedom is the foundation of any university, and is at the heart of McGill’s mission. The situation with Professor Potter did not hinge on the question of academic freedom; it hinged on whether he could continue to effectively carry out his responsibilities as Director of MISC. Academics with administrative positions, such as the director of an institute, have a leadership duty and a responsibility to represent their organization. They are understood to be doing so unless they specify clearly that the views they are expressing are their own and not those of their organization. The article having been penned under the authorship of Director of MISC made it difficult for Mr. Potter to carry on with his responsibilities as Director of the Institute, which he himself acknowledged.

Mr. Potter has resigned from his administrative duties as Director, and remains a professor at McGill, enjoying all the rights, privileges and responsibilities of that position. In that role, McGill will defend his right to academic freedom as it does with all members of its scholarly community. Suzanne Fortier Principal and Vice Chancellor McGill University