Ulrike Guérot: Censorship, Cancellation & Death of Democracy in Europe
Ulrike Guérot and Glenn Diesen
Ulrike Guérot is one of the leading German political scientists and experts on Europe. Guérot outlines how European academia began to change after the global financial crisis (2008-09) as the crisis resulted in reduced acceptance for criticism and the narrowing of acceptable debate. Following her criticism of the Covid policies, Guérot discovered that she was increasingly met with personal attacks rather than counter-arguments. When she questioned the narrative of an "unprovoked" Russian invasion of Ukraine she was suddenly accused of taking the side of Russia, a vicious smear campaign began, colleagues and friends turned against her, and a search to discover anything that could be interpreted as "academic dishonesty" eventually led to being fired from the university. The story about how one of Germany's leading academics could be cancelled tells a wider story about the decline of academic freedom, the efforts to crush all dissent, and the revival of European authoritarianism.
"Disrupting the university: The stifling of academic freedom in Germany, Austria and Switzerland": https://www.amazon.de/Disrupting-university-stifling-academic-Switzerland/dp/3864894999 The TV debate, which began the process of cancelling Ulrike Guérot
The book that was used to justify the cancellation of Ulrike Guérot: "Endspiel Europa: Warum das politische Projekt Europa gescheitert ist und wie wir wieder davon träumen können": https://www.medimops.de/ulrike-guerot-endspiel-europa-warum-das-politische-projekt-europa-gescheitert-ist-und-wie-wir-wieder-davon-traeumen-koennen-gebundene-ausgabe-M03864893909.html?variant=UsedGood&creative=&sitelink=&utm_source=PSM&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=DE_BM_OUT_WEB_ALL_SHO_GOO-PMX_MR-10_&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=17690411671&gbraid=0AAAAAD_YlSvTDrhpGc5O9tzyVP8aal1Yg
A similar story about the ongoing cancellation of Glenn Diesen: https://glenndiesen.substack.com/p/how-peace-oriented-norway-learned
I deeply appreciated this conversation because you both so eloquently illustrate the real cost of pursuing peace and truth in today's deeply polarized Western society. The way personal lives are destroyed and reputations tarnished simply for engaging in truth-seeking and independent thought—treated as dangerous and treacherous acts—is profoundly troubling.
Your experiences make me reflect on my own writing, where I similarly attempt to offer readers alternative perspectives on contemporary issues. Like you, I find I cannot stop writing and speaking about what I observe in the world around me, even when it costs me friendships and draws mockery from former colleagues.
I'm genuinely impressed by how you both handle these difficult situations with such grace, especially knowing how high the personal price can be. I wanted to reach out and thank you both for your courage in continuing this important work. Keep up the strength and keep believing. Your courage is inspiring.
Very, very interesting, I am impressed of bott of you!