...which still proudly displays Walter Duranty's Pulitzer prize...
and the New York Times Magazine. Conservatives are being blamed for the denial of tenure.
Since its publication in 2019, the 1619 Project has been highly controversial. It is seen as a re-writing of history by its critics. The work has been discredited by many historians and experts, with some calling for factual corrections. It should not be a surprise that her controversy followed Hannah-Jones to UNC. Nor should it be a surprise that conservatives are being blamed.
The 1619 Project ignited a continuing debate about the legacy of slavery, but has faced criticism from some historians over certain claims, and from conservatives who have labeled it "propaganda." The Republican-controlled North Carolina Legislature appoints the university system’s Board of Governors, which has significant control over the university’s board of trustees.
Liberals like to describe the project as a "reframing" of American history. Conservatives see it as a grievance-based rewriting of American history.
Hannah-Jones’s 1619 Project — which includes audio, essays, poems, graphics and visual art pieces — reframes the history of the U.S. through the legacy of slavery and its ultimate influence on the country’s democracy. She has maintained extensive ties to the university, delivering the Hussman School’s commencement speech in 2017. The Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, a national organization that she helped found to develop and retain journalists of color, is based at Hussman as well.
The premise of most reporting on this decision is that she’s entitled to tenure because the last two professors who held the current position of Hannah-Jones at UNC were granted tenure. Hannah-Jones still has a teaching job at UNC and she was offered a five-year contract instead of tenure. She has support for tenure from facility and approval from the tenure committee. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is her alma mater. In April the university announced she would be the newest Knight Chair, traditionally a tenured position. At the time, she issued a statement that set the tone.