Week 5 -- Tian Lan

Tian Lan

Section A01

Week 5

After reading the article “The Imperial University”, I am astonished about the existence of militarism, colonialism and imperialism in the university. The author talks about the demonstration at multiple UC campuses caused by the tuition hike and how the policeman treated students like their enemy. Some universities work with the United States military to develop weapons that has negative impact on the word peace. For instance, the CIA funded the social science research at MIT to advance psychological torture technique that applied in Vietnam, Argentina and some other countries during 1950 to 1960. As we know that the goal of the university is to advance the intellectual development of human beings and help everyone fulfill their innate potentials. In addition, university should also be a place where encourage freedom of speech and also serve as an engine of innovation and creativities for the human civilization. However, university has gradually try to serve the interest of the government and the elite corporations instead of following its original principle. Another thing mention in the article is academic containment, the university set up certain lines that restrict academic freedom. If any scholars across the line, they will face certain punishment. I am very upset about the current situation of university since it has been negatively influenced by the ideologies  in the society. The university should keep certain distance from the society to maintain its academic independence and freedom. [1]

 [2]

Question:

How does the imperial university originate from? What can students do to remove the imperialism in the university?

References:

1.     Chatterjee, P., & Maira, S. (n.d.). The Imperial University [PDF].

2.     Charlie, C. (n.d.). Best Of 'Pepper Spraying Cop' Meme. Retrieved October 22, 2017.