Incoming BostonUniversity professor Saida Grundy has already polarized students even before coming to campus.
Dr. Grundy is set to work as an assistant professor of sociology and African-American studies. But her seemingly anti-white tweets have certain groups up in arms and students questioning her capability to teach a diverse classroom that would include white males.
In one tweet, Grundy asked “why is white America so reluctant to identify white college males as a problem population?” before tweeting that “white masculinity isn’t a problem for America’s colleges, white masculinity is THE problem for America’s colleges.”
Saida Grundy, Boston University professor: White males a ‘problem population’ – http://t.co/n3alQiRlZY @kellanhowell pic.twitter.com/jA56lGZ1t1
— The Washington Times (@WashTimes) May 11, 2015
Did newly hired #BU Professor, Saida Grundy, cross the line with her controversial tweets? pic.twitter.com/P6Z1HkwHmk
— Varney & Co. (@Varneyco) May 11, 2015
Grundy also weighed in on several issues like the riot in Baltimore and Ben Affleck’s effort to hide a slave owning ancestor.
“dear white people: u are all ben affleck. those euphemisms for ur ancestors like “farmers” and “pioneers” means owned humans and killed natives,” she tweeted last month.
The vitriolic tweets were first noticed by University of Massachusetts Amherst student Nick Pappas and compiled them on his website SoCawlege.com.
The student also raised questions on Grundy’s qualification to grade her white male students work “as you clearly demonstrate some kind of special bias against them.”
Grundy’s new employer initially took up the cudgels for the new professor. BU spokesman Colin Riley clarified that Grundy was using her personal Twitter account and that she was “exercising her right to free speech and we respect her right to do so.”
But the school has since backtracked and amended its statement, especially after receiving complaints from students and emails from furious alumni threatening to pull financial support from the school.
“While we recognize that Dr. Grundy has the right to hold and express personal opinions, BU does not condone racism or bigotry in any form, and we are offended by such statements,” Riley stated in an interview.
The “feminist sociologist of race & ethnicity” has since made her Twitter account private. There’s also no indication whether or not Grundy would receive any disciplinary action for her tweets.