A University of Missouri professor is out of his teaching position after far-left students reported a joke he made about Wuhan and COVID-19 to the university.
Joel Poor, an associate teaching professor of marketing at the Trulaske College of Business, asked students to introduce themselves during the first day of classes yesterday over Zoom. One student identified himself as being from Wuhan, China– to which Poor responded, “Oh, let me get my mask on, hold on.”
According to one Twitter user, the student from Wuhan was not offended by the joke–yet dozens of leftist students took to social media demanding the school investigate Poor’s comments.
I know the guy who was on the other end of this and he is from Wuhan, China. He has told me he was not offended and he thought the professor was just joking with him. This is a modified video that makes this professor look bad. You're trying to ruin man's career to feel virtuous
— Nathan Etheridge (@NEther1dge) August 24, 2020
We have submitted this video to the Office for Civil Rights and Title IX.
— Mizzou (@Mizzou) August 24, 2020
Just hours after the introductory class, Poor sent a notification to his class on Canva: “”Today I was relieved of teaching duties, I apologize for any disruption this might cause you.”
“To anyone who was offended by my comments, I sincerely apologize,” Poor wrote in a follow up email to his class. “I have nothing but respect and love for the Chinese people and especially my students from China.”
A Change.org petition has been created to urge the school to allow Poor to continue teaching.
Mizzou told YAF that Poor remains on the faculty at Mizzou, despite his relief of teaching duties. The school had no further comment as it’s a “personnel issue.”
YAF reached out to Joel Poor for comment but he did not respond by the time of publication.
This is another example of the dangers of cancel culture. This professor made a harmless joke–the student it was in response to did not take any offense with it, yet dozens of far-left students took it upon themselves to cancel this professor.
This incident will have a chilling effect on free expression as professors intentionally restrict their own opinions and free speech in the wake of Mizzou’s decision. Never bend a knee to the mob–it shows the tyrants-in-training who is truly running the school.
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