Inaya Folarin Iman: Do we live in a society where people can express their ideas and thoughts without fear, harassment or intimidation?

Do we live in a free society? Do we live in a society where people can express their ideas and thoughts without fear, harassment or intimidation?

Well, this week has, once again, called that into doubt, where University of Sussex Professor of Philosophy and feminist, Kathleen Stock has been subject to a campaign against her, calling for her to be sacked because she maintains that biological sex is real and matters for women’s rights and freedoms, in contrast to the notion that we all have an innate gender identity which bares little to no relationship to our physiology.

A group called Anti Terf Sussex describes her online as “one of this wretched island’s most prominent transphobes, espousing a bastardised variation of radical feminism”. It claims she is harmful and dangerous to trans people adding: “We’re not up for debate. We cannot be reasoned out of existence.”

Posters have appeared around campus saying: “We’re not paying £9,250 a year for transphobia — fire Kathleen Stock” and “It’s not a debate, it’s not feminism, it’s not philosophy, it’s just transphobia and it’s not on”.

An art historian at Sussex criticised Stock on Twitter saying: “The virulent and oppressive implications of Stock’s public speaking about gender have made many people unsafe in the university and beyond. I salute these posters as an expression of resistance, intelligence and solidarity.”

The Times reports that a University of Sussex spokesman said “As a university community, we must be able to have complex discussions without bullying or harassment. We will always take swift action when this occurs.

"Our role as a university is to facilitate such conversations to advance shared understanding and common agreement. We insist that these are carried out respectfully and are always protective of our staff and students.”

Adam Tickell, vice-chancellor of the University of Sussex, said: “We are investigating activity on our campus which appears to have been designed to attack Professor Kathleen Stock for exercising her academic freedoms.

Disturbingly, this has included pressuring the university to terminate her employment.“Everyone at the university has the right to be free from harassment and intimidation. We cannot and will not tolerate threats to cherished academic freedoms and will take any action necessary to protect the rights of our community.”

Strong expressions of solidarity with Kathleen Stock have poured all over the internet with the hashtag #ShameOnSussex trending on Twitter. However, this has not been the first time this has happened and Kathleen Stock is not the first feminist academic to face harassment, intimidation, and threats for insisting that females exist and sex-based rights must be protected.

Professor of Modern History at Oxford University Selina Todd had experienced echoes of this campaign in 2020.This morning, Kathleen Stock wrote on Twitter “Universities aren’t places where students should just expect to hear their own thoughts reflected back at them.

Arguments should be met by arguments and evidence, not intimidation and aggression”Wise words indeed. Free speech for women. Free speech for all. Reality matters.