So I started reading this story in today’s Inside Higher Ed and immediately thought: “I know how this will end.” A tenured librarian at Purdue writes an “anti-gay” blog post at Townhall.com that makes an “economic” argument against homosexual behavior, the post is discovered by activists on his campus, and then controversy erupts. Students write the school newspaper, making arguments like this:

That’s right. I’ll call for his job. As a student, as a lesbian, as a human being, I believe with every fiber of my being that Purdue University in no way should affiliate itself with the hateful, bigoted opinions of Professor Chapman.

And this:

Bert Chapman surrendered his position at Purdue the moment he decided to publish such intellectual diarrhea on his blog. There are those who would defend this atrocious man by claiming that political correctness has conspired to snatch away his free speech, but this is not so. Dr. Chapman has the right to believe that homosexuals are immoral, just as it would be within his rights to believe the same about any other group of people.
The issue is not Dr. Chapman’s views of homosexuality, bigoted and wrong-headed though they may be, but that he has abused his authority as a scholar and an expert to disseminate hate-filled propaganda.

I kept reading, just waiting for the university response — for the university to apologize for the librarian’s speech, to pledge to make the campus a “safe place for all students,” and vow to, at the very least, “investigate” or refer the matter to a diversity committee. But here’s what university officials actually said:

“The university asks its faculty to make it clear that the viewpoints they express do not necessarily reflect those of the university. Mr. Chapman has gone out of his way to do this with a very clear disclaimer. He also took an extra step and posted his blog on a server not owned by the university,” said a spokeswoman. “The university has a policy prohibiting harassment if it unreasonably affects a person’s educational or work opportunities or affects his or her ability to participate in a university activity. This does not meet that standard. The First Amendment clearly allows him to state his opinion. The best response is to speak up, which is exactly what our students and some faculty are doing.

Well done, Purdue — what a wonderful expression of First Amendment values. The answer to speech you don’t like is to add your own voice to the debate, not to shut others down. In fact, I can think of at least one other university that could learn from your response to a professor’s speech on the same website.