Yesterday I visited Växjö and Linnaeus University, but for completely different reasons than what causes this blog post. This text is about Linnaeus University making a decision in principle to welcome all parties to campaign and arrange meetings on the university campus.
The decision is justified by the fact that the university as an authority can neither want nor exclude any party, as long as the party does not break the law. The university also wants "students to take an active part in the public debate and learn to think critically".
The neo-Nazi Swedes' Party is one of the parties that will now be able to campaign unhindered on Linnaeus University's campus areas in Växjö and Kalmar. The Swedes' party is also running in about 30 municipal elections. This is the highest level of parliamentary ambition that a National Socialist organization has had in Sweden since the Second World War.
Since the Swedes' party is formally a legal organization, it is seen by Linnaeus University as a party among others. The only problem is that the Swedes' party is a neo-Nazi party and by no means an ordinary party. If the Swedes' party is allowed to campaign and hold meetings on campus, it means that many students and employees will feel insecure. The mere presence of the Swedes' party can violate their human value and raison d'être. So no one should have to feel, anywhere, ever.
Linnaeus University is right that it is natural for students to want to develop their critical thinking and analyze the development of society. However, I can not understand at all how their critical thinking would benefit from meeting neo-Nazis in their place of education.
I understand that there are demarcation problems when undemocratic actors claim democratic arenas, but this is a unique situation. The Swedes' party is not just an undemocratic actor, it is an actor that disregards basic human rights and principles of equal value for human beings. The latter is an indispensable part of the academy's values that it should be obvious for a university to never give a damn about.
I hope and expect that Linnaeus University will realize the haste with its decision and instead of becoming the first Swedish university to open up to neo-Nazis, it will be the first university that clearly marks against racism and intolerance.
In the end, it was this with government responsibility. If the director general of the employment service can distance himself from the Sweden Democrats, our universities should be able to distance themselves from the Nazis. Both citizens and heads of government must be expected to show civil courage.
Feel free to listen P3 Nyheter's report on Linnaeus University's decision.