The University of North Carolina Board of Trustees voted on Wednesday, June 30, to approve tenure for journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones following weeks of scrutiny and criticism from other faculty members after the board initially offered the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist a non-tenured position at the school.
In a three-hour closed session, the board approved tenure for Hannah-Jones by a vote of 9-4.
Hannah-Jones released a statement through her legal team, thanking the students and faculty members who rallied to her defense over the past few weeks.
“I want to acknowledge the tremendous outpouring of support I have received from students, faculty, colleagues, and the general public over the last month – including the young people who showed up today at the Board of Trustees meeting, putting themselves at physical risk. I am honored and grateful for and inspired by you all. I know that this vote would not have occurred without you.”
The “1619 Project” writer also wrote that her ordeal was not just about her, but about protecting Black writers and acknowledged that there is still progress to be made.
“Today’s outcome and the actions of the past month are about more than just me. This fight is about ensuring the journalistic and academic freedom of Black writers, researchers, teachers, and students. We must ensure that our work is protected and able to proceed free from the risk of repercussions, and we are not there yet. These last weeks have been very challenging and difficult and I need to take some time to process all that has occurred and determine what is the best way forward.”
The “1619 Project” is a long-form journalism project developed by Hannah-Jones and “aims to reframe the country’s history by placing the consequences of slavery and the contributions of Black Americans at the very center of the United States’ national narrative.” The project’s name is derived from the year in which Africans first arrived in Virginia via slave ships. Hannah-Jones penned the introductory essay, which won the 2020 Pulitzer for commentary. The mostly Republican UNC Board of Governors has been critical of Hannah-Jones’ work in the past.
The University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Media and Journalism announced earlier this year that Hannah-Jones would be the newest Knight Chair in Race and Investigative Journalism, a professorship that typically comes with tenure. However, despite approval from faculty and the tenure committee, the MacArthur Fellow was offered a five-year teaching contract instead after the Board of Trustees did not act on the faculty’s recommendation.
She was set to begin July 1, but her legal team said she would not accept the position if it did not come with tenure. In the aftermath of the board’s initial decision to offer Hannah-Jones tenure, 42 faculty members signed a letter demanding an explanation, while demonstrators gathered on campus to protest the decision.
At least three Black faculty members announced their resignations in the past three weeks, while at least one specified that the board’s decision not to grant Hannah-Jones tenure was a major reason why she was leaving.
According to Dawna Jones, chair of the Carolina Black Caucus and assistant dean of students at UNC, Black faculty members have been overlooked for promotions for years and expected to take on extra responsibilities, which made Hannah-Jones’ ordeal feel like a “slap in the face.”
Board chair Richard Stevens said the board has been wrongly questioned in recent weeks and called “the most unpleasant” names.
“There have been those who have wrongly questioned this university’s commitment to academic freedom and open scholarly inquiry,” Stevens said. “We remain committed to being a light shining brightly on the hill. We embrace and endorse academic freedom, open and rigorous debate and scholarly inquiry, constructive disagreement.”
Footage shared to social media shows law enforcement forcefully removing protesters from the meeting room ahead of the closed session. In the video, officers repeatedly shove members of the group out the area.
“Don’t touch them!” someone yelled as the officer pushed members of the group.
“They can’t vote until they go into a closed session,” an officer said. At the end of the encounter, officers successfully pushed the protestors out of the room then quickly shut a set of doors.
As the videos spread online, Hannah-Jones asked that anyone who knows the names of the women shoved by the officers to reach out to her via direct message.
A representative of the board said they hoped Hannah-Jones would start at UNC on Thursday, although it is not clear when she will begin.
