The dean of Georgetown University Law Center has rebuffed a Trump administration official who sought to control the Catholic school’s curriculum. That’s not going to happen, Dean William M. Treanor said, because of the First Amendment.
“The First Amendment … guarantees that the government cannot direct what Georgetown and its faculty teach and how to teach it. The Supreme Court has continually affirmed that among the freedoms central to a university’s First Amendment rights are its abilities to determine, on academic grounds, who may teach, what to teach, and how to teach it,” Treanor wrote in response to Edward R. Martin Jr., interim United States attorney for the District of Columbia.
William Treanor
On Feb 17, the interim Trump administration official sent a threatening letter to Treanor and Georgetown Law — one of the nation’s most prestigious law schools — demanding changes in the curriculum.
“It has come to my attention reliably that Georgetown Law School continues to teach and promote DEI,” the Trump official wrote. “This is unacceptable. I have begun an inquiry into this and would welcome your response to the following questions.”
Martin then laid two specific questions: “First, have you eliminated all DEI from your school and its curriculum? Second, if DEI is found in your courses or teaching in anyway, will you move swiftly to remove it?”
Trump and his allies have made rooting out Diversity, Equity and Inclusion programs a primary mission as an appeal to their conservative white base who often believes minorities have been given jobs and attention that should have gone to white people.
Although as a private school, the federal government has no ability to mandate George University curriculum, the interim attorney for D.C. threatened Georgetown Law in another way: “At this time, you should know that no applicant for our fellows program, our summer internship, or employment in our office who is a student or affiliated with a law school or university that continues to teach and utilize DEI will be considered.”
The Georgetown Law dean unloaded on Martin, a politician with no experience as a judge or federal prosecutor. He previously served two years as chief of staff for Gov. Matt Blunt of Missouri and was elected chairman of the Missouri Republican Party after two failed campaigns for public office. He is president of Phyllis Schlafly Eagles, a far-right evangelical organization.
Edward R. Martin Jr.
Martin had been a leader in the “Stop the Steal” movement that wrongly asserted Trump won the 2020 presidential election. After being named to lead the D.C. office of the Justice Department, Martin dismissed 30 federal prosecutors who had worked on January 6 cases, eliminated the Capitol siege prosecution unit and replaced the office’s top assistant U.S. attorney with a former GOP Senate staffer. He ordered supervisors to conduct internal reviews of the office’s handling of January 6 prosecutions, focusing on obstruction charges Trump had criticized. He also launched an inquiry involving Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.
Dean Treanor wrote to Martin:
As a Catholic and Jesuit institution, Georgetown University was founded on the principle that serious and sustained discourse among people of different faiths, cultures, and beliefs promotes intellectual, ethical, and spiritual understanding. For us at Georgetown, this principle is a moral and educational imperative. It is a principle that defines our mission as a Catholic and Jesuit institution. Georgetown University also prohibits discrimination and harassment in its programs and activities and takes seriously its obligations to comply with all federal and local laws.
Your letter challenges Georgetown’s ability to define our mission as an educational institution. It inquires about Georgetown Law’s curriculum and classroom teaching, asks whether diversity, equity, and inclusion is part of the curriculum, and asserts that your office will not hire individuals from schools where you find the curriculum “unacceptable.” The First Amendment, however, guarantees that the government cannot direct what Georgetown and its faculty teach and how to teach it. The Supreme Court has continually affirmed that among the freedoms central to a university’s First Amendment rights are its abilities to determine, on academic grounds, who may teach, what to teach, and how to teach it.
“The constitutional violation behind this threat is clear, as is the attack on the university’s mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution.”
This is a bedrock principle of constitutional law — recognized not only by the courts, but by the administration in which you serve. The Department of Education confirmed last week that it cannot restrict First Amendment nights and that it is statutorily prohibited from “exercising control over the content of school curricula.”
Your letter informs me that your office will deny our students and graduates government employment opportunities until you, as interim United States attorney for the District of Columbia, approve of our curriculum. Given the First Amendment’s protection of a university’s freedom to determine its own curriculum and how to deliver it, the constitutional violation behind this threat is clear, as is the attack on the university’s mission as a Jesuit and Catholic institution.
Georgetown Law has one of the preeminent faculties in the country, fostering groundbreaking scholarship, educating students in a wide variety of perspectives, and thriving on the robust exchange of ideas. Georgetown Law faculty have educated world leaders, members of Congress, and Justice Department officials, from diverse backgrounds and perspectives. We pride ourselves on providing an excellent graduate and professional education, built upon the Catholic and Jesuit tradition. Georgetown-educated attorneys have, for decades, served this country capably and selflessly in offices such as yours, and we have confidence that tradition will continue. We look forward to your confirming that any Georgetown-affiliated candidates for employment with your office will receive full and fair consideration.
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