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It’s 2020, so you would think that most people would understand there are some words you just shouldn’t say. However, a Duquesne University professor still decided it would be a good idea to drop the n-word repeatedly during a lecture.
Gary Shank has been placed on leave for repeatedly dropping the n-word in a lecture while encouraging his students to use the word.
“I’m giving you permission to use the word, OK?” Shank said in a video that has surfaced on social media. “Because we’re using the word in a pedagogical sense. What’s the one word about race that we’re not allowed to use?
“It’s even hard to say, OK? I’ll tell you the word. And again, I’m not using in any way other than to demonstrate a point. Fair enough?”
Shank has since apologized for his use of the word.
“As part of my pedagogy this morning I used a term that I now realize was deeply troubling to the class,” an email to students, via the Duquesne Duke. “It was not my intent to do, but I must take responsibility for the impact of my words and teaching.”
An investigation into the incident is underway and in the meantime another professor will be teaching Shank’s educational psychology course.
