A college professor in Georgia is receiving backlash after discussing the ills of illegal immigration on social media.
But Georgia Gwinnett College Associate Professor of History Fang Zhou is standing his ground.
Himself a legal immigrant from China, Zhou made the comments earlier this month, in which he claims to teach students about “the financial drain of illegal immigration on the economy” and more.
“I am against political correctness. I speak truth to power in class and my students learn about the financial drain of illegal immigration on the economy and the high crime rates of illegal immigrants. My students are ‘woke’ and are overwhelmingly against illegal immigration after taking my class,” he wrote.
Last week, a Georgia state rep got hold of the comments and posted screenshots to Twitter, asking college officials if they endorsed Zhou’s views.
While we celebrate the passage of the Dream Act, this @GeorgiaGwinnett professor uses hostile terms “ghetto thugs,” “libtards,” & spreads false narratives about immigrants.
Are these the values supported by Georgia Gwinnett College? https://t.co/tCLJJ850Gb pic.twitter.com/1kL3xv3mS3
— Bee Nguyen (@BeeForGeorgia) June 6, 2019
“Are these the values supported by Georgia Gwinnett College?” asked Rep. Bee Nguyen, sharing a number of Professor Zhou’s comments.
Speaking to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Nguyen said Zhou’s words were full of “inflammatory terminology” and spread “false narratives” about illegals.
“Those myths have been disputed many times,” she added. “I have concerns about him teaching those things in a classroom.”
Professor Zhou says the First Amendment allows Nguyen to express her opinion.
“Everybody has free speech, so (Nguyen’s) welcome to complain,” Zhou commented to the Journal-Constitution.
Through her tweet, Nguyen was able to raise awareness of Zhou’s anti-illegal immigration views, but when asked about Zhou’s comments, Gwinnett College officials referred the Journal-Constitution to its academic freedom policy, which states faculty is allowed to speak freely, but “should remember that the public may judge [his/her] profession and [his/her] institution by [his/her] utterances.”
According to the Journal-Constitution, Zhou said he never forces his views on students and that many disagree with him and even send him hate mail, but in order to debate the issue, they have to come with facts.
“To make a convincing argument, please present evidence,” Zhou says.
For Zhou, one solution to stem the flow of illegal immigrants is to stop offering free handouts.
“If you are going to to reward illegal immigrants, there will be more illegal immigrants,” Zhou says.
Dr. Zhou made an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tuesday to explain the situation:
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