Story Archive

Academic Freedom

“You don’t know me, son, so let me explain this to you once,” said the poster on theater professor James Miller’s door. “If I ever kill you, you’ll be awake. You’ll be facing me. And you’ll be armed.” The quote was from Capt. Mal Reynolds, a character on the short-lived space western Firefly TV show, who was pictured on the poster. A University of Wisconsin-Stout spokesman said administrators “believe in free speech” but “can’t allow posters in public that imply threats of violence.” University police officers were ordered to remove the poster. In response, Miller put up a new poster on the dangers of fascism. They took that one down too. “He thinks we acted improperly, and we didn’t,” insisted university spokesman Doug Mell. “The posters are down and they’re going to stay down.” Prof. Miller was summoned to a meeting to discuss his posters. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education flew in to attend, as did actor Nathan Fillion, who played Reynolds on the show. The administration canceled the meeting and returned the posters. (AC/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) ...“People dont like to be meddled with. We tell them what to do, what to think, don’t run, don’t walk. We’re in their homes and in their heads and we haven’t the right.” —River Tam, in the Firefly movie Serenity.