APSA Statement on Gender Studies in Hungarian Universities

The American Political Science Association expresses deep concern regarding the Hungarian government’s plan to end funding and accreditation for gender studies at the country’s universities. The proposal continues the worrying trend of restrictions on academic freedom in Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government (see APSA’s previous letter on threats to academic freedom and the status of universities in Hungary here). Scholarship on gender and inequality is of critical importance and deserves the same freedom of academic inquiry afforded to other disciplines at Hungarian institutions. Political interference in a legally accredited and legitimate degree program is unacceptable.

The American Political Science Association is a scholarly association that represents more than 11,000 U.S. and internationally based professors and students of political science, including scholars in Hungary.

We urge Prime Minister Orbán and State Secretary for Education Dr. József Bódis to reject this decree and to ensure that students and faculty in Hungary are able to pursue their studies with full protections for academic freedom and that universities are able to determine their course of study.

Download the full statement.