Grand Canyon University Professor Suspended For Comments Critical Of Black Lives Matter
Grand Canyon University has suspended Professor Toby Jennings for his comments on Black Lives Matter.
Grand Canyon University Suspends Professor Toby Jennings
Phoenix, AZ – A Grand Canyon University professor who spoke critically about Black Lives Matter in a public forum has been suspended from the University after Black Lives Matter activists complained.
Toby Jennings, who is a black professor at GCU, made the comments almost a year ago, according to Fox10Phoenix. The comments came shortly after the assassinations of police officers by Black Lives Matter radical terrorists in Dallas and Baton Rouge.
University officials were not made aware of the comments until recently, when Black Lives Matter complained. Jennings has since apologized, and the university investigation is ongoing. He has been suspended for the rest of the semester.
In September, 2016, GCU posted a link on its website to a ministry forum called “God’s concern for the poor: What’s missing in social justice”. The forum participants had a beneficial and positive discussion, and Jennings’ comments most likely were made as a result of the passion which he has for his subject.
In the forum, Jennings said that Black Lives Matter has many voices, and that some are good, some are not so good.
He said, “You have folks that participate in it on one side that are very thoughtful about the matter and then on the other side, you have people on the opposite side of that who frankly should be hung and I did say that on video.. they are saying things that are not helpful in any shape or form or human dignity or flourishing.”
The phrase ‘should be hung’ is controversial and inappropriate, especially when taken out of context, which is what the group did when they complained.
According to GCU, officials from its School of Theology talked with Jennings after he made the comments, and told him that his remarks were offensive. The matter appeared to be handled, as other university officials were not made aware of the comments or the incident.
But some Black Lives Matter members in Phoenix have now responded and said that the University has not done enough, while not saying what exactly is enough. Brian Mueller, GCU President, said in response, “Yes, it was wrong, but it is an isolated incident and it does not represent who our faculty is and it does not represent who our students are.”
Perhaps Black Lives Matter is angry that another black person has called them out for what they truly are. It’s a shame that an otherwise good professor, with no apparent previous history of inappropriate remarks, gets called out and made an example of. But it’s par for the course for Black Lives Matter.
