Hamline University Completely Walks Back ‘Islamophobic’ Smear of Art Lecturer After Getting Slapped With Lawsuit
Kerem Yücel/Minnesota Public Radio via AP
Hamline University retreated from its position an art history lecturer committed an “Islamophobic” act by showing her class a painting of the prophet Muhammad — a move that got her let go by the small liberal arts college, sparking an academic freedom controversy.
Hamline drew headlines and plenty of criticism for dropping the adjunct professor, Erika López Prater, after she showed a 14th-century masterpiece, painted by a Muslim artist, as part of her course, which partially focused on holy imagery from various religions.
López Prater showed her students the painting with great caution, knowing that many Muslims oppose visual representations of the founder of Islam. She took multiple levels of precautions with her students in order to accommodate anyone who might have been offended before she showed the painting.
Aram Wedatalla, a Muslim student in López Prater’s class, complained to Hamline’s administrators after the fact, which led to the professor’s dismissal. The college sent out a school-wide email to announce the news, which described López Prater’s actions as “undeniably inconsiderate, disrespectful and Islamophobic.”
The former lecturer filed a lawsuit against the university in Minnesota district court, claiming Hamline’s actions not only resulted in loss of income and emotional distress, but that their statement damaged her reputation and job prospects. In response, the University released a new statement walking back their comments about López Prater.
“Like all organizations, sometimes we misstep,” the university said. “In the interest of hearing from and supporting our Muslim students, language was used that does not reflect our sentiments on academic freedom. Based on all that we have learned, we have determined that our usage of the term ‘Islamophobic’ was therefore flawed.”
The firing sparked a debate about whether López Prater’s actions were, in fact, Islamophobic. The Council on American-Islamic Relations and other Muslim organizations have condemned the university’s handling of the case, arguing her actions were clearly not driven by any sort of malicious bigotry.
