Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • NPR

    In China, Scholars Are Being Punished Amid Growing Squeeze On Public Expression

    Space for public expression has been tightening in media, the arts — and now in higher education as well. Some university professors have been fired for expressing views outside the mainstream.
    by Anthony Kuhn Oct 10, 2017 5 minutes
    Staff wait at the Cambridge University Press stand at the Beijing International Book Fair in August. An international outcry ensued when the publisher agreed to block certain articles from one of its journals after pressure from Beijing. The press later reversed its decision. / GREG BAKER / Getty Images

    When students returned to Beijing Normal University for classes last month, there was a notable absence in the classical Chinese class taught by Shi Jiepeng: Shi himself.

    University authorities fired the assistant professor in late July, citing a number of offenses, including "expressing views outside the mainstream of society."

    The charges still puzzle the lanky teacher, as he sits speaking to me in a café just outside the university's main gate.

    "Sure, my views are a bit different from the mainstream and from official views," he concedes. "But an open society should be able to tolerate them."

    China apparently can't. In the past five years, space for public expression has been tightening in media, the arts and civil society. Education hasn't been spared: The ruling Communist Party and congress have ordered the country's institutions of higher learning to build

    You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

    More from NPR

    NPR2 min readAmerican Government
    With Federal Fraud Trial Looming, George Santos Drops Out Of New York House Race
    The scandal-plagued former Republican congressman, ousted from his House seat last year, abandoned his long-shot independent bid for Congress. But he suggested his political career may not be over.
    NPR3 min read
    'Tales Of Kenzera: ZAU': A Deep Story About Grief Leavened By Satisfying Gameplay
    New action platformer Tales of Kenzera: ZAU delivers a moving story, sleek traversal, and a brilliant setting gleaming with Afro-futurist highlights. It's just not as meaty as competing Metroidvanias.
    NPR3 min readCrime & Violence
    Pro-Palestinian Protests Spread To The Campuses Of USC And The University Of Texas
    Arrests were made at both schools. The LAPD said it would continue patrolling USC's campus into Thursday, while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the protestors at UT-Austin belong in jail.

    Related