Cancelling ‘racist’ Hume costs university

THE University of Edinburgh has seen its donations slump by almost £2million after it “cancelled” the philosopher David Hume over his views on race.

The institution said 24 donations and 12 legacies had been “cancelled, amended or withdrawn” in response to the September 2020 renaming of the David Hume Tower dedicated to its former student, one of the leading figures of the Enlightenment in Scotland.

While he argued against the institution of slavery, Hume was condemned by student activists for saying in a footnote to a 1758 essay that he was “apt to suspect the Negroes to be naturally inferior to the whites”. The tower was renamed 40 George Square.

The university did not say how much it lost over the row but overall donations fell from £23.2million in 2020-21 to £21.3million the next year. Some donors who pulled out also cited Neil Thin, a senior lecturer who was investigated and acquitted after accusations of racist and “problematic” views.

A university spokesman said “views among our donors will vary widely and we respect the fact individuals may sometimes disagree with decisions we take”. The information was disclosed to the Scottish Daily Mail after a Freedom of Information request.