Nikole Hannah-Jones: Take This UNC Tenure And Shove It!

UNC alumna Nikole Hannah-Jones turned down an offer of tenure from UNC Chapel Hill and has accepted a position at Howard University. Pressured by public backlash after offering Hannah-Jones a five year contract instead of following general precedent with an offer of tenure, UNC’s Board of Trustees met last week and voted in favor of offering Hannah-Jones tenure. She has declined the offer.

Faculty of the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media responded to to Hannah-Jones’ rejection by publishing a frank statement titled, “Racism and Reactionary Politics Kept Nikole Hannah-Jones from Joining UNC.” It stated, in part: “While disappointed, we are not surprised. We support Ms. Hannah-Jones’s choice. The appalling treatment of one of our nation’s most-decorated journalists by her own alma mater was humiliating, inappropriate, and unjust. We will be frank: It was racist.”