Eric Rasmusen

Eric Rasmusen

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WDRB and Fox59) -- An Indiana University professor has responded to backlash over one of his tweets after campus officials called his views racist, sexist and homophobic and calls for his resignation have mounted.

Eric Rasmusen, a professor of business economics at IU, shared an article Nov. 7 on Twitter titled, "Are Women Destroying Academia? Probably." He pulled a line from the article, saying, "'geniuses are overwhelmingly male because they combine outlier high IQ with moderately low Agreeableness and moderately low Conscientiousness.'"

The tweet spurred hundreds of comments. Rasmusen said he was just sharing an interesting thought.

"I think I should be able to quote from an article without saying I agree with everything in the article," he said.

The tenured professor said he uses Twitter to keep track of interesting articles. The publication he retweeted says it is a collection of controversial perspectives largely excluded from the American Mainstream Media.

Rasmusen said he couldn't say whether he agreed with the article "because I have not looked back at it. I've been so busy to see what was in it."

In a letter to the Kelley School of Business community, IU Provost Lauren Robel did not mince words. She noted other controversial social media posts from Rasmusen over the years. She called his views racist, sexist and homophobic. Robel also said Rasmusen believes women do not belong in the workplace, gay men should not be permitted in academia and black students are generally unqualified for attendance at elite institutions.

Rasmusen said her letter is not true.

"Academic freedom should protect me even if I believed all the things the provost attributed to me," he said.

Indiana University spokesman Chuck Carney said the institution cannot fire Rasmusen because of his First Amendment rights. Some on campus, however, are calling for Rasmusen's resignation.

Senior Jensen Hanson said he would transfer out of Rasmusen's class.

"There's no way I would stay in the class," he said.

"As a student, it would be hard to really understand his beliefs and some of the stuff he says," senior Matthew Noskin added. 

Indiana University said it is making changes in Rasmusen's classroom to create a double-blind system on assignments that would hopefully prevent bias in grading. In addition, no student is forced to take his class.

Rasmusen does not believe students should be concerned about bias.

"Not at all. I think less in mine, than in most," he said. "I try to bend over backwards if students disagree with me politically." 

As for his tweet, he said he supports women in academia. His wife has a doctorate, and his daughter might become a Philosophy professor.

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