Posted 2019/5/5
The University of Chicago houses one of the US’s many Confucius Institutes, and has done so for 10 years. Now, with their contract up, the institute is vying for a 5 year extension. However, 108 professors employed by the Illinois University have petitioned the university’s board against the renewal of the contract.
The premise of their petition is that the institute is merely propaganda that is ‘anti-freedom’. They are concerned about the program’s agenda; the institute provides the finances, teachers and course material for foreign students wanting to study Chinese language and culture. The professors who all signed the petition have expressed their opinion that they believe the institute is merely a way for China to spread its soft power across the US.
