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Carnegie Mellon Places Professor Uju Anya on Leave

By Drooid · Sep 15, 2026, 11:36 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Uju Anya On Leave

Carnegie Mellon University placed professor Uju Anya on voluntary leave after X posts violated standards.
President Farnam Jahanian and Provost James Garrett said the posts used expletives, racial slurs, demeaning language.
Anya’s leave runs through summer 2027 and she will not teach this year.
Languages-department faculty were doxxed and threatened, leading to increased campus security.
Campus police monitor the case and have found no credible threats.

Summary

Musk Amplifies Controversy

Elon Musk reposted Anya’s posts and called her a “real professor” on X, amplifying the controversy.
X user @TheWuhanClan shared 2021 screenshots showing Anya wrote “Die first, white man.”
After backlash, Anya’s X account became inaccessible, reportedly deactivated by her or removed by the platform.
In a July essay, Anya said two administrators told her her behavior embarrassed Carnegie Mellon.

History

Historical Context

In 1957 the Supreme Court, in a unanimous nine-justice opinion by Justice William J. Brennan, held in Sweezy v. New Hampshire that a state may not punish a professor for Marxist writings, cementing academic-freedom protection. Carnegie Mellon’s 2024 leave of Professor Uju Anya after her X posts, amplified by Elon Musk, revives that clash, urging universities to tighten conduct rules for online speech.

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Uju Anya On Leave

Carnegie Mellon University placed professor Uju Anya on voluntary leave after X posts violated standards.
President Farnam Jahanian and Provost James Garrett said the posts used expletives, racial slurs, demeaning language.
Anya’s leave runs through summer 2027 and she will not teach this year.
Languages-department faculty were doxxed and threatened, leading to increased campus security.
Campus police monitor the case and have found no credible threats.

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