Professor Cornel West Announces His Resignation From Harvard

Dr. Cornel West ends his 15 year tenure at Harvard University.

Harvard University’s staff has lost a prominent voice in the Black community as longtime scholar and progressive activist Dr. Cornel West announced his resignation from the prestigious institution. 

This news didn’t come as a surprise because West said earlier this year he would forego his drive for tenure at Harvard Divinity School to rejoin the faculty at Union Theological Seminary.

 Late Monday, July 12, the 68-year-old scholar posted what he called “my candid letter of resignation” on Twitter.

Professor West, who instructed at Harvard’s law and divinity schools, as well as in its department of African and African American studies, stated his colleagues were “paralyzed” by the university’s rejection of his tenure.

West’s resignation comes from Havard’s decision not to extend tenure to him, citing his outspoken support for the Palestinian cause. Claiming Harvard has “intellectual and spiritual bankruptcy of deep depths.”

“We all knew the mendacious reasons given had nothing to do with academic standards,” said West on the Havard administration. “I knew my academic achievements and student teaching meant far less than their political prejudices.”

Harvard is now on the list with North Carolina of prestigious universities losing a powerful Black voice. Just recently, award-winning journalist and scholar Nikole Hannah, who won the Pulitzer Prize for her work on The New York Times‘ “1619 Project,” left UNC to join the faculty at Howard University.