Dear leadership of Charles University,

we are writing to you as students, alumni, faculty and academic staff of Czech and Slovak universities who care deeply about the democratic tradition of university education and academic freedoms.

In this open letter, we are responding to the attacks on the independence of the academic environment and the devaluation of the societal importance of the humanities, carried out by representatives of current political establishment, notably the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Petr Macinka, as well as certain media outlets. We express solidarity with students, teaching and academic staff who are targets of these attacks and are unjustly labelled as extremists in the media. We urge the management of Charles University to stand up for the integrity of the academic community.

In recent weeks higher education institutions, particularly the Faculty of Humanities of Charles University, have been subjected to unfounded smear campaigns in the media involving distorted or outright false statements accusing them of ”raising terrorists.” Such attacks are part of an effort to deliberately influence and restrict the intellectual debate, most notably in relation to pressing issues such as the climate crisis, gender and economic inequalities, and civil rights struggles. Use of such rhetoric sets a dangerous precedent. In the United States it has already allowed for extensive cuts in funding for historical and social science research concerned with historically marginalized groups, climate change, or the Holocaust; in Hungary it has led to the dissolution of the Gender Studies program and the subsequent relocation of the entire Central European University abroad.

The humanities and social sciences are fundamental to any democratic and pluralistic society committed to human rights and dignity. It is no coincidence that authoritarian regimes throughout history have targeted these fields as one of their first objectives. Representatives of the Motoristé sobě party have based their political agenda on the long-term denigration of the humanities and threats to “shut down” or impose tuition fees on university programs that do not align with their own ideological interests. Not only are we concerned about any attempts to suppress these fields of study, but also about the prospect of internal control and dismantling of academic institutions—for instance, via self-governing bodies such as academic senates—which poses a serious threat to the universities’ independence and autonomy.

We commend the leadership of Charles University for standing up for students and freedom of speech in response to the open letter from the lobbying group Aliance pro rodinu; however, it is incomprehensible to us why similar support is not being extended to students and faculty, largely from the Faculty of Humanities, who are facing escalating hostility. We are likewise concerned about the current developments surrounding the undergraduate course “Introduction to the Climate Crisis” at the faculty. Although, according to the available information, adjustments to the course and disciplinary measures were introduced prior to Minister Macinka’s remarks, the overall situation and its media coverage underscore the dangers that the academic community currently faces. There is increasing political pressure to impose ideological censorship on higher education as well as to introduce tuition fees for fields of study deemed "invaluable", and we view these developments as a threat to the democratic foundations of academia.

We therefore urge Charles University to:

• not retreat in the face of demagogic, disparaging, and degrading narratives of government and political representatives;
• take a strong stance against hatred, intimidation, and censorship that its students and staff have faced in recent weeks from political elites and certain media outlets;
• continue to defend, cultivate, and uphold the values of higher education, academic freedom, and democratic and critical debate.

We view ongoing efforts to restrict academic freedoms as a pretext for gradual destruction of democratic institutions and the dismantling of the constitutional state. We are observing with concern similar developments in the fields of arts, environmental protection, the nonprofit sector, and the public media. In the current situation, it is imperative for us to stand together and present a unified front against authoritarian tendencies.

Due to the current public pressure directed predominantly at Charles University, we are addressing this letter to its leadership. However, the ability to freely debate, teach and engage in research irrespective of the political interests of governing parties pertains to all of us; therefore, we also appeal to other institutions of higher education, as well as to cultural and artistic institutions: stand with us in defense of the universities’ independence and academic freedom. We stand with you —— stand with us!