Canada: Acadia University’s Rick Mehta facing investigation for unpopular comments on gender, multiculturalism
Jordan Peterson can truly say he’s not alone in the free speech battles of the great white north as Acadia University’s Rick Mehta is now under investigation for violating free speech.
Mehta, who teaches psychology, has reportedly made unpopular comments about multiculturalism and gender issues and university has received a complaints from both campus members and others about his classroom content and social media comments.
photo Jennifer Moo via Flickr
“The University has a legal responsibility to provide an environment free from discrimination, sexual harassment and personal harassment,” Vice President Heather Hemming told Mehta in a Feb. 13 letter.
“The nature and frequency of these complaints and the significance of the allegations is concerning for the University, and we have determined the necessity of proceeding to a formal investigation,” Hemming wrote.
She said Acadia is using Wayne MacKay, professor emeritus of law at nearby Dalhousie University, to investigate the case.
An Acadia spokesperson declined to tell The College Fix what policies Mehta allegedly violated and what in his behavior implicated “discrimination, sexual harassment and personal harassment.”
Mehta’s twitter page has this pinned tweet: “For those of you following my story, let me be clear: I loathe both racism & violence in all its forms. What I DO stand with is the right of ANYONE to free speech, regardless of how reprehensible I may find it. It’s really that simple. See my attached Free Speech talk for more.”
University of Toronto’s Jordan Peterson has discovered fame for his refusal to use gender-neutral pronouns.
Jessica Durling, a “human rights activist, journalist, and radical sex theorist” who does not appear to have a connection to Acadia, created a Change.org petition that has gained nearly 1,200 signatures as of Sunday night.
“We demand the full removal of Rich Mehta from the university” because he has “expressed he is against trans rights, believes residential schools [for indigenous children] did good, and believes that the Indigenous ‘industry’ are exploiting Western values of justice,” it says.
“All these groups are protected under the Nova Scotia Human Rights Act,” and “marginalized communities … cannot feel comfortable” with Mehta continuing to teach at “a respected university such as Acadia.”
The petition does not include any quotes from Mehta’s speaking or writing that back up its claims about his views. It simply includes a screenshot of Mehta’s retweet of a tweet that says it is “statistically impossible” for all children educated in residential schools to have had a “negative experience.”
