Harvard President's "innate ability" comments aren't blowing over

Harvard President Larry Summers is still in hot water over his comments last month suggesting that innate differences between men and women may be a primary explanation for why so few women are in top science and mathematics jobs. Apparently there was a rather tense faculty meeting on Tuesday:

More than 250 professors crowded University Hall on Tuesday for what old hands described as the most heated staff meeting since the Vietnam War. It was closed to the press except for The Harvard Crimson, the student newspaper, and professors recounted their remarks to reporters outside.

“Many of your faculty are dismayed and alienated and demoralised. There is a legitimation crisis concerning your leadership and style of governance,” Arthur Kleinman, chairman of the anthropology department, told Dr Summers.

“I have heard several outstanding colleagues say it is time to leave Harvard. I don’t believe that, but I fear others do,” Professor Kleinman said. “I ask you then to think hard about how who you are as president has taken us to this dangerous moment.”

The New York Times writes today (buried in an article in the Books section):

For 90 minutes on Tuesday night, more than 250 members of the Harvard faculty confronted Dr. Summers, with a number of them stating that he had besmirched the reputation of the university through a series of intemperate remarks and had wielded his power in unseemly ways. One attendee told The Harvard Crimson that it was "likely" the faculty would give a vote of no confidence for Dr. Summers when they meet in an emergency session Tuesday.

Tonight, at long last, the transcript of Summers' remarks has finally been released.  I haven't had time to look it over yet, but based on the excerpts I've seen, it looks like he said pretty much what it was reported that he said. 

I wonder if this is one of the reasons why the transcript has suddenly appeared:

Some professors called on their boss to release a full transcript of his controversial remarks at the National Bureau for Economic Research seminar on January 14, and alluded to unconfirmed rumours that Dr Summers also raised questions about differences among the races.

After all, Summers certainly doesn't want to fall in any deeper than he has already dug himself.

Comments

[Mike Thomas]

I think I have a rather unique perspective on this issue as a journalist who is married to a Ph.D. biochemist. I've seen first hand some of the sexist attitudes she has run up against. I've watched as she chose to put her career on hold to raise our first child. As our son grows up there is no question that his mother will be the one teaching him math, while his dad will teach him English.
Larry Summers attitude toward women in science is unsurprising to me. It is all too common, unfortunately. Perhaps by allowing the light of day to shine on his comments he has inadvertently given us the opportunity to apply more scrutiny to these stagnant stereotypes.

[Peter]

Mike: Thanks for your comments. I completely agree that Summers' attitude from his January remarks is all too common: the notion amongst many men (and some women as well) that discrimination just isn't that important any more, even while these same people hold not-so-subconscious beliefs that women may not be as fit for the job as men.

Summers' comments were indeed useful in a certain sense as they have helped us to reignite awareness of these attitudes. Unfortunately, this whole episode has also reinforced just how mainstream and commonplace the above attitudes are, and how proudly and stubbornly these people hold them.