Angry Students Want to Censor International Relations Professor John Mearsheimer for Supposedly Being “Pro- Putin”

  |  
Mar 9, 2022

On March 5, 2022, several University of Chicago students circulated a letter demanding that international relations professor Mearsheimer clarify his views on the current Russo-Ukrainian crisis. 

Mearsheimer has gained notoriety for his realist foreign policy beliefs where he has challenged the conventional wisdom in D.C. on how to handle foreign affairs. 

Particularly controversial is a viral University of Chicago YouTube video titled “Why is Ukraine the West’s Fault? Featuring John Mearsheimer” where Mearsheimer argued that the 2014 Euromaidan crisis was the product of the flawed approach to foreign policy D.C. policy elites have pursued since the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Specifically, Mearsheimer cited the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as the primary driver behind Russia’s tensions with the West, which has now turned into a full-scale war in the current Russian military invasion of campaigns.

Several individuals such as Daryna Safarian, Edita Kuberka, Iryna Irkliyenko, Darya Kolesnichenko, and Sergiy Kuchki signed on to the letter.  In this letter, the signatories stated that they want “to fight against Putin’s aggression.” They want to do so by launching campaigns “to identify and condemn those who are actively engaged in the spread of Putinism — an ideology which is being used to justify aggression towards Ukraine.”

These signatories accused Measheimer of “propagating Putinism.”

They cited the following statements that Mearsheimer made in his viral YouTube video:

“A significant element of the participants in the Ukrainian Revolution of Dignity were Fascists.” 

 

“The Revolution was a Coup.”

 

“The war in the Donbass region was largely a civil war.”

 

The signatories believed that Mearsheimer’s assertions were unsubstantiated. Moreover, they argued that “this same narrative is being used by Putin and Russian social media to justify his war in Ukraine as a fight against fascists oppressing Russian-speakers in the state.” 

The signatories alleged that Mearsheimer “is known to receive substantial funds from the Russian government affiliates — for example, the Valdai Discussion Club, among many. “

To remedy this situation, the signatories called on University of Chicago president Paul Alivisatos to do the following:

“1) A public disclosure of the amount and source of all Russian funds received from (via any foundation, individual or government agency) by Dr. Mearsheimer.

 

2) A clear statement from Dr. Mearsheimer of his current position regarding Russian aggression in Ukraine, whatever it may be. 

 

3) A statement from the university community at large that it does not condone anti-Ukrainian ideology on campus.“

Richard Hanania tweeted on March 5, 2022, “University of Chicago students circulating a letter calling for the cancellation of John Mearsheimer over “Putinism,” “anti-Ukrainian ideology,” and spreading Russian disinformation like that there was a coup in 2014 and it included fascists.”

Whether or not Mearsheimer ends up getting cancelled is anyone’s guess. The fact is that he’s a foreign policy realist; something that will make people uncomfortable for pointing out the many inadequacies of the Globalist American Empire’s foreign policy. Unlike most foreign policy specialists, Mearsheimer believes in the prudential use of state power abroad. In his ideal world, American power would be only used to contain a real peer competitor in China.

Alas, we don’t live in such a political environment. Instead, the current foreign policy class prefers to bleed America dry by pursuing multiple  pointless conflicts abroad, all while China sits back and continues biding its time. With a geopolitically and economically exhausted U.S., China can sit on the sidelines and accumulate power. Once the smoke clears, the U.S. will emerge weaker, whereas China will be positioned to be the premier power and redefine the international order.

The U.S. can avoid this fate by listening to Mearsheimer’s wisdom. Let’s hope Americans come to their senses and listen to the University of Chicago professor.

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