{"id":147685,"date":"2022-12-06T13:28:10","date_gmt":"2022-12-06T12:28:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/?p=147685"},"modified":"2025-12-19T11:26:33","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T10:26:33","slug":"how-hot-topic-issues-dominate-the-debate-on-diversity-and-inclusion-in-higher-education","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.erasmusmagazine.nl\/en\/2022\/12\/06\/how-hot-topic-issues-dominate-the-debate-on-diversity-and-inclusion-in-higher-education\/","title":{"rendered":"How hot topic issues dominate the debate on diversity and inclusion in higher education"},"content":{"rendered":"

Attempts aimed at making education more inclusive are regularly met with resistance from both advocates and opponents of diversity policy \u2013 whether it\u2019s about shifting Western bias in the curriculum or about the signs on toilet doors. These are the four major controversies.<\/p>\n

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The debate surrounding diversity and inclusion issues in higher education is by no means a novelty \u2013 although it does seem to take on a different name in each decade. Whereas a few years ago, the debate centred mainly on performance-oriented issues, such as getting more women into senior executive positions and recruiting more international students, the issues these days are more specific and political in nature. This also means that a lot of issues are more sensitive, and people are more likely to have their feelings hurt.<\/p>\n

A study conducted by the independent media in 21 institutions of higher education shows that anti-racism and gender identity are the topics in relation to which tempers run the highest.<\/p>\n

At the University of Amsterdam (UvA), for example, a number of lecturers received death threats<\/a> after they called on the Executive Board to deplatform Jordan Peterson, a controversial Canadian psychologist, as a guest speaker. In an open letter<\/a>, the lecturers asserted that Peterson\u2019s transphobic and misogynist views did not align with the basic principles and values of the university, such as non-discrimination and equality. Peterson nevertheless spoke in Amsterdam and drew a full house<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\t

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