12/22/2025
FIRE’s ranking gave numbers and language to a concept that has a particularly dangerous power to warp communities through silence: the erosion of free speech is an effective tool for alienation.
On a national level, freedom of expression for university faculty is being challenged. On Oct. 1, the White House sent the “Compact for Academic Excellence” to nine academic institutions, detailing a list of demands to be followed to receive preferential treatment in federal funding, with one acutely affecting faculty.
“Signatories shall maintain institutional neutrality at all levels of their administration,” the document said. “This requires policies that all university employees, in their capacity as university representatives, will abstain from actions or speech relating to societal and political events except in cases in which external events have a direct impact upon the university.”
If signed, universities would effectively trade the voices, opinions and perspectives of their faculty and staff for funding, perpetuating an idea that one’s thoughts can be bought.
As of now, no university has signed the compact.
📝This article was submitted as a Letter to the Editor. Neal Daniel, president of UnlockAI, is a senior majoring in Innovation, Technology, and Design, with minors in Industrial Engineering and Public Administration.
📸The Miami Hurricane Staff
