New report finds ‘radical progressive’ agenda rife at British universities, Cambridge and Oxford lead list

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MANCHESTER, England – More than half of British universities are teaching a “woke” ideology to students, a new report has claimed.

The use of “trigger warnings” for potentially upsetting subject matter and “controversial and contentious” ideas such as “white privilege” and “anti-racism” are all cited as forms of so-called “radical progressivism” within institutions.

The report, “The Radical Progressive University Guide” by conservative think tank Civitas, also reveals how the most prestigious universities, such as Oxford and Cambridge, rank highest in a league table of campus wokery.

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A study by conservative think tank Civitas looks "to quantify the extent of ‘radical progressive’ policies at British Universities, including their curbs on free speech."
(Google Earth)

One conservative commentator said the results were a “damning indictment” of higher education in the U.K. with universities “increasingly taken over by far left woke zealots”.

Researchers found that 87 out of 140 universities (62%) made reference to “trigger warnings” or content warnings while 79 (56%) mentioned “white privilege’ in guidance to staff and students.

Materials, training or resources on “anti-racism” were offered by 82 (59%) universities.

Examples include Brunel University’s policy for transgender students, which states that any historical or comparative content now recognized as transphobic must be clearly labeled with a trigger warning, and Chester University’s warning that the book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” “can lead to difficult conversations about gender, race, sexuality, class and identity.”

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The Civitas report placed Cambridge atop its university guide due to the institution’s policies.
(Tu xa Ha Noi via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Imperial College London has a “white ally” webpage which encourages students to think about their “white privilege” and how to use it make changes and educate others in their community.

Universities, the report states, are “advancing a form of activism” that is being “foisted” upon students and staff.

Author Dr. Richard Norrie, who examined universities’ websites and reports in national and local media, said “radical progressivism” was a mutation and splicing of past radicalisms that included Marxism, postmodernism, feminism, Freudianism and Maoism.

He said there was an “increased politicization” of “monocultured” U.K. universities that had implications for academic freedom.

Norrie denied his report was an attack on liberalism and another shot in the culture wars.

“We’re sticking up for liberalism actually,” he said.

“Liberalism is free inquiry not dictated by university administrators or political activists, and it entails the right to be wrong, to make mistakes or say the wrong things, and say the right things that these people disagree with.

“It’s about academic independence and freedom to research.”

Students take part in a climate protest on March 15, 2019, in London. (Jack Taylor/Getty Images)

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Nile Gardiner, director of The Heritage Foundation’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, said: “This league table is a damning indictment of higher education in the U.K. with British universities increasingly taken over by far left woke zealots. 

“It is vital for the British government to stand up to the Orwellian left in Britain’s universities who are trying to crush freedom of speech. It is immensely sad to see some of the finest universities in the world, including Oxford and Cambridge, stifling freedom of thought, belief and expression and kowtowing to the totalitarian woke left.” 

The report goes on to claim that universities are “playing a game of deep hypocrisy” – due their ties with China – that “puts at risk academic freedom while encouraging students into a form of political radicalism.”

Students at Oxford University near the Hertford Bridge on their way to a graduation ceremony.
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It claims that at least 117 out of the 140 universities (84%) have significant ties with China, including research partnerships, overseas campuses, and Chinese-government sponsored programs, despite the country’s human rights record.

A spokesperson for the Russell Group, which represents 24 leading U.K. universities said: “Our universities are places where free speech and the expression of all ideas and viewpoints is encouraged and protected.

“There is nothing in this report, which is based on flawed assumptions, to suggest that this is not the case.”

Fox News Digital reached out to Oxford and Cambridge Universities for comment on the report. 

Ian Leonard is a freelance journalist who reports on UK news for Fox News Digital. Ian has contributed articles to The Times, The Daily Telegraph, The Guardian, Daily Mail, The Sun, Daily Mirror, and many others. He’s also worked as a producer for BBC Radio 5 Live. He can be followed on Twitter @iancleonard