“Academic Freedom Is Not Unlimited” — Ghent University Suspends Nathan Cofnas Over Conduct Following Jason Arday Controversy

*Disciplinary Investigation Begins
Ghent University in Belgium has suspended American academic Nathan Cofnas, who recently brought renewed plagiarism allegations against the late former University of Cambridge professor Jason Arday, pending a preliminary disciplinary investigation into his conduct and public statements surrounding the controversy.
The suspension comes days after Arday, 41, was found dead in Battersea, south London, on Friday, August 14, 2026, following weeks of intense public scrutiny over allegations concerning plagiarism and aspects of his academic and personal record.
No official cause of Arday’s death has been announced, and there has been no formal finding establishing that the public controversy surrounding him caused or contributed to his death.
Arday, who became Cambridge’s youngest Black professor when he was appointed in 2023, had resigned from his position as Professor of Sociology of Education on August 5 amid mounting media coverage of the allegations.
The plagiarism allegations against him had not been established through any completed formal investigation before his death, and Arday had disputed the accusations.
Cofnas, a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences at Ghent University, announced his suspension on X on Thursday.
“I was just suspended by Ghent University. They will almost certainly fire me,” he wrote.
In another post, Cofnas said he was under investigation by the university for allegedly discriminating against Arday.
Ghent University subsequently confirmed that the staff member concerned had been suspended as a precautionary measure while it conducts a preliminary disciplinary investigation.
The university said it was examining whether sufficient grounds existed to refer the matter to its competent disciplinary body for further proceedings.
“Ghent University formally notified the staff member concerned of the launch of a preliminary disciplinary investigation,” a university spokesperson said.
“As part of this process, the university is assessing whether there are sufficient grounds to refer the case to the competent disciplinary body for further consideration. Pending this preliminary investigation, Ghent University has suspended the staff member as a precautionary measure.”
The suspension does not amount to a final disciplinary finding against Cofnas, and the university has yet to announce whether formal disciplinary proceedings will ultimately be instituted.
Ghent University had earlier said it was shocked by Arday’s death and that the development should prompt reflection.
In a joint statement, the university’s Rector, Petra De Sutter, and Vice-Rector, Herwig Reynaert, stressed that while the institution strongly supports academic freedom and open debate, those principles are accompanied by responsibilities.
“We attach great importance to academic freedom and to open academic debate, even when views are controversial. However, that freedom is not unlimited,” they said.
According to the university leadership, academic freedom may be restricted where necessary to protect the rights of others, adding that recent public statements by one of its postdoctoral researchers concerning the Arday matter were being taken seriously.
The university said it remained committed to respect for human dignity and opposed discrimination, hatred and racism.
De Sutter and Reynaert said the institution had decided to take action within the limits of its powers and applicable disciplinary framework but cautioned against prejudging the eventual outcome.
The disciplinary action follows weeks of controversy surrounding allegations made against Arday.
Concerns about alleged plagiarism in his work had surfaced previously but did not result in a formal determination against him. The controversy resurfaced with greater intensity after Cofnas published allegations claiming to have identified numerous instances of plagiarism in Arday’s academic work.
The allegations subsequently received widespread coverage in the United Kingdom and United States and prompted renewed scrutiny of Arday’s academic record and the circumstances surrounding his rise at Cambridge.
Some commentators also used the controversy to criticise diversity, equality and inclusion policies in academia, arguing that Arday had benefited from such programmes.
Arday consistently disputed allegations against him.
In his resignation letter dated August 5, he reportedly said he had “reached the limits of what any person should reasonably be expected to endure.”
His death days later generated widespread criticism of the manner in which the allegations and his career had been publicly scrutinised.
Cambridge University Chancellor Chris Smith described aspects of the public reaction as a “racist feeding frenzy,” while anti-racism campaigners and some academics accused institutions and sections of the media of subjecting Arday to disproportionate scrutiny.
Oxford academic Sneha Krishnan went further, characterising what happened to Arday as a product of institutional anti-Black racism and describing the circumstances surrounding the harassment he faced and his death as “institutional murder.”
That description represents Krishnan’s assessment and has not been established by any official investigation into Arday’s death.
The controversy has also prompted large public demonstrations.
Organisers said more than 30,000 people attended a vigil for Arday at Trafalgar Square in central London earlier this week, while tributes were also placed at the gates of Senate House in Cambridge.
Campaign group Stand Up to Racism, which organised a London vigil, has described the scrutiny directed at Arday as a “racist witch-hunt.”
Cofnas himself has previously attracted controversy over writings about race, gender and meritocracy.
He was dismissed from a position at Emmanuel College, Cambridge, in 2024 after publishing controversial views concerning racial differences and representation in elite institutions.
Among other arguments, Cofnas had claimed that under what he considered a strict meritocratic system, Black people would be largely absent from prominent positions outside sport and entertainment.
He has also written critically about affirmative action and female representation in employment, arguing that diversity initiatives can result in less-qualified candidates being selected over others.
Those views have attracted widespread criticism and contributed to previous institutional action against him.
Cofnas describes himself as a critic of what he regards as “woke” ideology and has publicly discussed controversial theories concerning race and intelligence.
Ghent University’s present investigation, however, concerns his recent conduct and public statements in connection with the Arday affair.
The university has not publicly specified every statement or action being examined, nor has it announced that Cofnas committed discrimination or any other disciplinary offence.
For now, he remains suspended as a precautionary measure while the university determines whether there are sufficient grounds to proceed with formal disciplinary action.
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