The Minister of Higher Education and Research Frédérique Vidal.

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AFP

More than 600 members of higher education asked this Saturday for the resignation of their supervising minister, Frédérique Vidal, in a column published in

Le Monde

, accusing him of "raising the threat of intellectual repression" under cover of investigation into "Islamo-leftism".

"As in Orban's Hungary, Bolsonaro's Brazil or Duda's Poland, postcolonial and decolonial studies, work on racial discrimination, gender studies and intersectionality are precisely targeted", consider the signatories of the platform (teachers, researchers ...), considering "such a minister unworthy of representing us and we strongly ask for his resignation".

Thomas Piketty and Dominique Méda among the signatories

The Minister of Higher Education and Research denounced on February 14 "Islamo-leftism" which, according to her, "plagues society as a whole and the university is not impermeable", before asking on Tuesday at the CNRS "a review of all the research" taking place in France, in order to distinguish between what is academic research and what is activism.

The signatories, including the economist Thomas Piketty or the sociologist Dominique Méda underlined that the research programming law, carried by the minister and adopted on November 20, and the lack of funds granted to the university are the main reasons “that hinder (their) work”.

"We can only deplore the indigence of Frédérique Vidal, stinging the repertoire of the far right on an imaginary 'Islamo-leftism', already invoked in October 2020 by the Minister of National Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer", insisted the signatories.

"An emblematic controversy of an instrumentalisation of science"

The CNRS had agreed on Tuesday to participate in the study requested by the minister on "Islamo-leftism", regretting, however, "a controversy emblematic of an instrumentalisation of science" and a "political slogan [which] did not correspond to any scientific reality ”.

Jean-Michel Blanquer, on the contrary, described this Saturday "Islamo-leftism" as an "unmistakable social fact" that must be "looked in the face", adding that "some still try to minimize this political project".

"It is a word which does not necessarily have a scientific content" but "describes a political reality", judged Jean-Michel Blanquer, adding that it was "a very global term".

Society

"Islamo-leftism" at the university: Macron says he is attached to "the independence of teacher-researchers"

Politics

Universities: Frédérique Vidal calls for an investigation into "Islamo-leftism" and arouses strong criticism

  • Radical Islamism

  • University

  • National Education

  • Society

  • Frederique Vidal

  • Jean-Michel Blanquer