Last Thursday, NYU announced that Stern professor Jonathan Haidt would address graduates at the all-university commencement on May 14. But his resume, built on a crusade to combat “wokeism,” is not without controversy. 

As a social psychologist and author of “The Anxious Generation,” Haidt’s work focuses on the mistakes young people make — it’s not hard to predict that his remarks will likely be out of step with those from past honorees. Since 2022, NYU has brought commencement speakers who share students’ values: Saturday Night Live’s Molly Shannon gave honest advice on rejection and perseverance, former Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin offered rousing remarks on changing the world and Taylor Swift relayed an inspiring message on growing into one’s self. It’s difficult to imagine what message Haidt could offer that is fitting to our generation’s collective feelings of ennui and social disillusionment. 

Haidt’s patronizing notes on “coddled” college students, young peoples’ technology usage and the lack of conservative perspectives in higher education are the antithesis of what graduates should hear as we reflect and enter the next phase of our lives. The class of 2026 deserves a speaker who can acknowledge the ongoing threats to higher education — and the activism that defined our time at NYU — while offering a message of hope as we enter a world fraught with political and economic confusion. Haidt is not that speaker.

As a self-identified champion of “viewpoint diversity” on college campuses, Haidt made a name for himself challenging university administrations and student bodies on an alleged lack of space for disagreement. He penned op-eds on the importance of campus free speech, even for the most controversial and dangerous speakers — but never came to the defense of the dozens of NYU students zip-tied and pepper sprayed by the New York Police Department for their protest in solidarity with Gaza at Gould Plaza, just outside his office. Instead, he claimed their expression of free speech was “activism that is not grounded in reality.” Why then, is someone so staunchly against NYU students’ opinions leading a celebration of their academic achievement?

The “Heterodox Academy” founder has dismissed vast swaths of dissenting opinions on Israel as antisemitism, and has done little to engage with the good-faith and nuanced perspectives of thousands of students here at NYU, let alone defend their rights to express them. Despite his championing of “viewpoint diversity,” he resigned from the Society for Personality and Social Psychology after refusing to submit a statement on identity, equity and anti-racism. Clearly his own philosophies don’t matter enough for him to take action in an authentic way. His petty refusal to implement diversity, equity and inclusion efforts in academia — no longer the “heterodox” perspective in a country that’s threatening legal action against universities engaged in such efforts — cut directly against the rich diversity of the NYU community.

Nonetheless, Haidt’s selection shouldn’t come as a surprise from an administration that attempted to scrap affinity graduation ceremonies for Black, Latino, AAPI and LGBTQ+ students, switched to pre-recorded graduation speeches following Gallatin graduate Logan Rozos’ condemnation of the “atrocities currently happening in Palestine” and required the Program Board to vet potential artists for its V100 concert on their stance on Israel’s slaughter of Palestinians. Haidt’s 2016 argument that universities ought to decide between “truth or social justice” offered us a window into his alarming belief in the incompatibility of academia and compassion, long before the “Ethical Leadership” professor was tapped to deliver our commencement.

As the class of 2026 reckons with our administration’s repeated efforts to silence our right to free speech, defang our student organizers and union leaders and physically reshape our campus to stifle protest, Haidt’s selection is a gutting reminder that our institution is more committed to platforming speakers who won’t rock the boat rather than those who would encourage us to make a change for the better.

WSN’s Opinion desk strives to publish ideas worth discussing. The views presented in the Opinion desk are solely the views of the writer.

Contact Griffin Eckstein at [email protected].