In universities and other truth-seeking institutions, free inquiry is under threat.
The practice of free inquiry rests on tolerating dissent and promoting data and logical argument over feelings, status, party rule, or group affiliation. Many of the most noted successes of the West are the fruits of free inquiry, but this legacy is now at risk. Furthermore, our education system is failing to teach the values of free inquiry and free speech, which are vital to preparing citizens to work alongside those with differing opinions.
In
The Free Inquiry Papers
, an impressive array of academics come together to address this urgent problem. Across 21 chapters, the authors lay out the arguments for free inquiry, document the current threats, and offer solutions to protect and advance free inquiry. The authors represent a range of academic and political backgrounds, but they agree on three fundamental perspectives. First, the current higher education regime now prioritizes activism and status over the search for truth, especially in the social sciences and humanities. This is neither politically nor scientifically sustainable. Second, improvements are possible and would enhance the institutions’ validity and credibility. Third, no one has all the answers.
The erosion of support for free inquiry matters for everyone, but it is especially dangerous for the institutions whose mission is the production of ideas and knowledge. If we lose our ability to debate and discuss ideas openly and honestly, then both science and democracy will yield to a new dark age.