University of Ottawa students are advocating for professor Verushka Lieutenant-Duval to be fired following her use of the N-word in an art and gender class in September.
Lieutenant-Duval was suspended on Sept. 23 after a student complained that she said the N-word during a class. On Oct. 21, Lieutenant-Duval apologized for her use of the N-word, in French language interview with Radio-Canada.
Students at U of O are advocating for more severe discipline to Lieutenant Duval, with a petition calling for the university to “discipline [Lieutenant-Duval] and ban the use of the N-word.”
In three weeks, the petition received over 12,000 signatures.
According to students in the class, Lieutenant-Duval had been discussing words that communities have reclaimed, when the term had been listed in her PowerPoint presentation as “The N-Word.”
Lieutenant-Duval proceeded to say the N-word aloud, in a context that was not quoting a text according to students in the class.
For years, many Canadians have called for the N-word to be banned in schools due to its derogatory meaning and history of institutionalized racism against Black people.
Guinea-born, Babacar Faye, president of the University of Ottawa Student Union (UOSU), felt that this incident has initiated an important discussion on systemic racism and academic responsibility both in the classroom and on campus.
“The biggest issue here is there’s a lack of leadership at the university,” Faye said.
Faye added he is concerned about the noticeable lack of perspective, consideration, conscience, and empathy from U of O administration. He said that there has been a lack of initiative to address the concerns of Black students.
Faye said professors should only be initiating conversations about the use of racial slurs if they have the appropriate credentials and qualifications.
Regardless of how informed Lieutenant-Duval previously was on the subject, Faye stressed that there is a broader institutional issue here regarding academic freedom versus academic responsibility and consequence.
Controversy of academic freedom
The situation has drawn light to the controversy of academic freedom at universities, which some U of O professors said they believe was compromised with Lieutenant-Duval’s suspension.
On Oct. 16, over 30 U of O professors signed a letter protesting Lieutenant-Duval’s suspension, saying that the use of the N-word can offer educational value.
“It is important that university administrations, while helping to uncover and abolish all forms of systemic racism, ensure that the transmission of knowledge, the development of critical thinking and academic freedom is protected,” the letter said.
Andrew Taylor is an english professor at U of O who signed the letter. He claims his reasoning behind signing the letter is not associated with racism, but supporting a colleague.
“As a professor I need to discuss controversial topics all the time,” Taylor said in an email to the Charlatan. “When I do so I may make mistakes or get things wrong or offend people, especially when teaching (online) or teaching in a second language. When I make mistakes, I hope that people will give some consideration to the situation and to my intentions and not treat me the way professor Lieutenant-Duval has been treated.”
Faye, despite wanting to see more action taken on the university’s behalf, reasoned with the professors’ letter.
“I think it’s understandable,” he said. “They want to protect their colleague and they want to support [Lieutenant-Duval] in a difficult situation.”
In a statement posted to social media, the UOSO said it was deeply disturbed by the professors’ letter, calling for the university to denounce the actions of the staff involved.
“They’ve found their voice in defending the use of a racial slur while discounting the vast majority of uOttawa’s Black community’s disagreement,” the statement said.
In a message from U of O president Jacques Frémont released on Oct. 19, Frémont said, “Freedom of expression and academic freedom are essential to the functioning of any university.” He added Lieutenant-Duval will continue teaching at the university “while enjoying her full academic freedom.”
Danielle Ruhigisha is the director of community engagement for the U of O Black Student Leaders Association. She said the university’s letters addressing the issue disregards the “emotional trauma [for students] associated to the events.”
Racism at U of O
The Lieutenant-Duval case is not an isolated instance of racism at the university, which has faced criticism for multiple racist incidents on campus recently.
In September, students complained that racist language was used during an online class by other students when a professor was not present. Neither the U of O dean of the faculty of law nor the university provided details on what was said, reported the CBC.
Véronique Armstrong is a political science student at U of O with Jamaicanand Afro-Canadian heritage. She experienced a similar incident in a class last year when a professor used the N-word several times when reading a text.
“I’m not surprised that it occurred again,” Armstrong said of the Lieutenant-Duval case.
Armstrong, who was vocal about her negative experience on Twitter, has received support in accordance with her discontent.
“It’s pretty saddening that I have so many people that agree with me that this word shouldn’t be used on campus, and yet professors are still suggesting that there’s room for debate around this word,” she said.
However, Armstrong said she is not sure whether this most recent incident should cost Lieutenant-Duval her job.
“I believe that if she was expelled from campus … it would cause even more outrage and divisiveness on campus,” Armstrong said. “So I don’t know if I necessarily agree with that.”
In the U of O president’s statement released Oct. 19, the president said Lieutenant-Duval has apologized for using the term in class and that students can continue the class with a different instructor. No further punishment of Lieutenant-Duval has been discussed and she has since returned to teaching.
Ruhigisha said the university is attempting to gaslight Black students in order to protect its own academic freedom. Going forward, she said she would like to see the university listen to the concerns of Black students.
“We are the students, we are the scholars, but we’re also … the protests and we’re the diversity and we are hurt,” Ruhigisha said. “We are also strong and we will keep standing and stand with whoever allies with us.”
Featured image by Spencer Colby.
