Dorian Abbott, Professor of Geophysical Sciences at the University of Chicago and creator of the Heterodox STEM Substack, recently hosted the Freedom of Intellectual Navigation Conference at the David Rubenstein Forum on November 7th. The event was marketed as an “operation against the aggressive and hostile forces trying to limit intellectual exploration on campuses nationwide” and brought together prominent academics who have faced censorship, cancellation, and academic persecution for their views. Abbot himself faced a thorough cancellation campaign in 2021 for publishing an article arguing for the prioritization of individuality and meritocracy over group identity in hiring and admissions. For this, Abbot was uninvited from giving a lecture at MIT and had UChicago students send letters demanding departmental action against him.
The event was split into two sessions, each consisting of lectures from multiple individual speakers on an academic topic of their choice, followed by a group Q&A with all the session’s speakers. The morning session consisted of Professor Bryan Caplan from George Mason University, Professor Gad Saad from the University of Mississippi, Professor Michael Bailey from Northwestern University, and Professor Amy Wax from the University of Pennsylvania, followed by an afternoon session including Professor Anna Krylov from the University of California, Los Angeles, Professor Sally Satel from Yale University, and Professor Garrett Jones from George Mason University.
After opening remarks by UChicago Economics Professor Harald Uhlig on the motivations and goals of the Freedom of Intellectual Navigation Conference, Professor Bryan Caplan kicked off the event with his lecture titled “Don’t Be a Feminist.” Here, Caplan first argued that there is a dissonance between modern definitions of feminism highlighting societal inequality between the sexes and how feminism is practically defined in public discussions: that society treats men more fairly than it treats women. Using this definition, Caplan argues that differences in outcomes between genders do not necessarily reflect unfairness, further elaborating that both sexes have historically faced unique advantages and disadvantages in society which makes claims of men having systemically better circumstances dubious. For example, Caplan pointed out that a supposed inequality women face of occupying a lower proportion of high-level positions could be balanced out by men being over-represented in dangerous jobs and facing higher suicide rates. Caplan then closed by arguing that the flaw with modern feminism is that it solely focuses on one gender’s hardships as if the others don’t exist, leading many of its arguments to be inaccurate.
Next, Professor Gad Saad lectured on what he calls “Suicidal Empathy,” where he claimed that a maladaptation causing people to over-empathize to their own detriment has led to parasitic values infiltrating the West. Saad, whose massive reputation onX has made him the target of multiple attempted cancellations, likened ideas such as mass immigration into Western countries to the Japanese ritualistic suicide of seppuku, claiming that the West is killing itself to atone for its self-perceived prior sins. Saad further argued that this maladaptation has led to what he claims to be absurd and illogical positions, such as “Queers for Palestine.”
After this, Professor Michael Bailey focused on the subject of autogynephilia—male sexual arousal at the idea of being a female. Bailey has studied this subject, among others, for most of his career and has faced large censorship efforts by fellow academics. In his talk, Bailey emphasized the need for more research into the various types of “transsexuals,” criticizing the use of the word “trans” as a gross overgeneralized blanket term for multiple types of trans people.
Concluding this topic-packed morning session, Professor Amy Wax provided a lecture titled “Bourgeois Values.” In this, Wax stated that it was necessary to acknowledge differences among people of diverse cultures. Wax criticized “modern elites” for ignoring these differences and promoting an attitude of non-judgmentalism, which has not sufficiently promoted straightforward, sensible values such as hardwork, respect for authority, self-discipline, and marriage. Wax has come into hot water over these types of remarks on the moral differences between cultures, and is currently suing the University of Pennsylvania over academic freedom violations.
Following Professor Wax’s speech came the first Q&A session moderated by Peggy Mason, a UChicago professor of Neuroscience, featuring all four speakers from the morning session. While a variety of subjects were covered, the most frequently discussed topic was Professor Caplan’s support for open borders as articulated in his book Open Borders: The Science and Ethics of Immigration, with some questions referencing Saad and Wax’s lectures arguing against open border policies. An interesting moment came when Caplan argued that young Americans would agree that they shared values more in common with foreign contemporaries than with their grandparents, to which the majority of the audience seemingly rejected this idea when prompted for a show of hands. These stark yet respectful and academically curious dialogues continued until it was time to resume the conference’s programming with more thought-evoking lectures.
After a lunch break, the second session began with Professor Anna Krylov’s speech titled “Campus Protests,” which criticized universities for their delayed or lack of enforcement of university policies in response to the nationwide campus demonstrations and encampments in 2024 following Israel’s war in Gaza. Krylov is a founding member of the Academic Freedom Alliance, an organization committed to the rights of college faculty.
Next, Professor Sally Satel lectured on the insertion of “social justice” into the field of medicine through medical education and research and its resulting consequences, further elaborating that an overfocus on sociopolitical matters has reduced the efficiency of medical education. Satel has been an outspoken critic of these trends towards “political correctness” since at least 2001, when she published her book P.C. M.D., and has continued to advance the issue.
Finally, Professor Garrett Jones gave a speech on immigration, and in sharp contrast to his fellow George Mason colleague Professor Bryan Caplan, Jones argued that mass immigration is extremely culturally and politically detrimental for the country. Citing how Confederate diasporas in the North limited the racial tolerance of their districts, Jones posited that neighbors fundamentally shape the values of a community and the nation at large. Jones further argued that immigration similarly changes the values of hosting nations, which too shapes the laws of the nation due to politicians appeasing their increasingly foreign voter bases.
Finally, Dorian Abbot hosted a Q&A session featuring Wax, Krylov, and Jones. An overarching theme of this discussion was how to hold conversations on campus with those who disagree with you. Most of the questions focused on the 2024 campus protests and how college administrations should handle future incidents.
Whether one agreed with all the arguments presented by these academics or not, the Freedom of Intellectual Navigation Conference highlighted how the most controversial topics in academia, such as immigration, gender identity, and the future of the West, are simultaneously the topics where open debate and dialogue, without threats of violence or censorship, are the most needed. It served as a phenomenal example of the UChicago community’s broad commitment to promoting open inquiry and discussion. When asked about his reaction to his conference, Dorian Abbot stated: “The event was an exhilarating free exchange of ideas. I hope in the future we can find a secure way to host similar speakers for larger audiences.”