Calgary University’s Firing of Tenured Professor Over Twitter Posts Found ‘Disproportionate’

Frances Widdowson, a former associate professor in the department of economics, justice, and policy studies at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, in an undated photo. Courtesy of Frances Widdowson

The decision by Calgary’s Mount Royal University (MRU) to fire a tenured professor in 2021 was disproportionate to her conduct, an arbitrator has ruled.

Frances Widdowson, who often spoke out against “wokeism” and identity politics on her Woke Academy website and social media, was fired just before Christmas amid a “Twitter War”—as described by the arbitrator—between her and colleagues. She filed a grievance over her dismissal.