Robert Jensen
@robertjensen.bsky.social
📤 196
📥 336
📝 181
Emeritus Professor, University of Texas at Austin.
[email protected]
Reading about CBS Evening News declaring ‘We Love America’ took me back to my 2003 article, “Patriotism’s a Bad Idea at a Dangerous Time.”
robertwjensen.org/articles/pat...
loading . . .
Patriotism’s a Bad Idea at a Dangerous Time – ROBERT JENSEN
https://robertwjensen.org/articles/patriotisms-a-bad-idea-at-a-dangerous-time/
3 days ago
0
1
0
My friend Stan Cox's new book is out. "In Anthropause, Stan Cox writes that by embracing degrowth, we are not turning our backs on progress. Instead, we are redefining it."
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/796376...
loading . . .
Anthropause by Stan Cox: 9781644215142 | PenguinRandomHouse.com: Books
A rallying cry to save the Earth with an “anthropause”—a term that can apply to any broad rollback of economic activity that gives nature room to recover and flourish. “An iconoclast...
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/796376/anthropause-by-stan-cox/
6 days ago
0
1
0
I had a great conversation with Eric Jennings on the World XP Podcast, covering politics, culture, and my career.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=um9D...
loading . . .
Robert Jensen - Media's Lies: Vietnam & Iraq War Cover-ups, Journalism Saved Me: Weird to Confident
YouTube video by World XP Podcast
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=um9DzRGNAf4
6 days ago
0
1
0
A clip from my interview for the World XP Podcast, on the joy of connecting with students.
x.com/worldxppodca...
loading . . .
https://x.com/worldxppodcast/status/2010450357005287525
7 days ago
0
1
0
“Teaching is not politics, but there is always an underlying political current to teaching about human affairs because there is inescapably a politics to living.”
www.merionwest.com/teaching-stu...
loading . . .
Teaching Students to Think for Themselves Is Never Apolitical
Journalism professor Robert Jensen considers how educators should handle contentious politics in the classroom, from the Iraq War to more recent American actions in Venezuela. He argues that honest di...
https://www.merionwest.com/teaching-students-to-think-for-themselves-is-never-apolitical/
11 days ago
0
1
0
“Teaching Students to Think for Themselves Is Never Apolitical“ in Merion West.
www.merionwest.com/teaching-stu...
loading . . .
Teaching Students to Think for Themselves Is Never Apolitical
Journalism professor Robert Jensen considers how educators should handle contentious politics in the classroom, from the Iraq War to more recent American actions in Venezuela. He argues that honest di...
https://www.merionwest.com/teaching-students-to-think-for-themselves-is-never-apolitical/
12 days ago
0
1
0
m.yale.edu/c446
loading . . .
Helena Addison, PhD, RN
Helena Addison, PhD, RN Postdoctoral Fellow, National Clinician Scholars Program, Yale University PhD, Nursing Science – University of Pennsylvania MSN –
https://m.yale.edu/c446
24 days ago
0
0
0
From 2016, reflections on the sexual predators Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.
wagingnonviolence.org/2016/11/why-...
loading . . .
Why Professor Watchlist gets my teaching values completely wrong
The question isn't whether to politicize the classroom, it's whether we presented the material with evidence, reasoned argument and critical reflection.
https://wagingnonviolence.org/2016/11/why-professor-watchlist-gets-my-feminist-teaching-values-completely-wrong/
29 days ago
1
2
0
“If you want to be a good man, do your best to be a good person.” From “How to be a good man.”
juliebindel.substack.com/p/how-to-be-...
loading . . .
How to be a good man
A guest post, by Robert Jensen
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/how-to-be-a-good-man
about 1 month ago
0
0
0
My response to the conversation on “How to be a good man.”
juliebindel.substack.com/p/how-to-be-...
loading . . .
How to be a good man
A guest post, by Robert Jensen
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/how-to-be-a-good-man
about 1 month ago
0
1
0
One of the prison writers I work with, Antoine Davis, writes about taking control of his health through exercise in prison. Online at Grassroots Thinking,
www.grassrootsthinking.com/essay-why-i-...
loading . . .
Why I work out in prison
The nurse offered pills to lower his blood pressure. He chose to work out instead. In his first for Grassroots Thinking, Antoine Davis shares the physical and mental health benefits of exercise, and h...
https://www.grassrootsthinking.com/essay-why-i-work-out-in-prison/
about 2 months ago
0
0
0
“the paradox of pornography. ,,, How can a media genre become more mainstream at the same time that it becomes more misogynist and racist? Why would liberals/progressives/leftists who routinely critique sexism and racism give pornography a pass?”
juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornograph...
loading . . .
Pornography, Hate Speech, and the Inconsistencies of the Left
By Robert Jensen
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornography-hate-speech-and-the-inconsistencies
2 months ago
0
0
0
Thanks to Howie Richey for a great conversation at “Turbulent Times Book Review” and on KURU Radio about my writing on the multiple cascading ecological crises.
ttbc.substack.com/p/my-intervi...
loading . . .
My Interview with Robert Jensen
fewer and less
https://ttbc.substack.com/p/my-interview-with-robert-jensen
2 months ago
0
0
0
“I learned quickly that my new brethren on the left were mostly opposed to radical feminism, and eventually embracing radical feminism got me shunned by liberal and postmodern feminists.”
juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornograph...
loading . . .
Pornography, Hate Speech, and the Inconsistencies of the Left
By Robert Jensen
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornography-hate-speech-and-the-inconsistencies
2 months ago
0
0
0
See Julie Bindel’s Substack for my reflections on “Pornography, Hate Speech, and the Inconsistencies of the Left.”
juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornograph...
loading . . .
Pornography, Hate Speech, and the Inconsistencies of the Left
By Robert Jensen
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/pornography-hate-speech-and-the-inconsistencies
2 months ago
0
0
0
reposted by
Robert Jensen
University Press of Kansas
2 months ago
FREE screening of "Prairie Prophecy" at Lawrence Arts Center, Nov. 21st, 7:00PM. Get 40% off (UPKHOLIDAY25) these Wes Jackson books: -Hogs Are Up (
kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700630592/
) -The Restless & Relentless Mind of Wes Jackson by
@robertjensen.bsky.social
(
kansaspress.ku.edu/9780700636808/
).
0
0
1
“We are more likely to advance human dignity and ecological sustainability if we focus less on ‘why are those people so bad?’ and more on ‘what forces shaped this outcome?’” from “Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature”
www.commondreams.org/opinion/who-...
loading . . .
Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature | Common Dreams
We are more likely to advance human dignity and ecological sustainability if we focus less on “Why are those people so bad?” and more on “What forces shaped this outcome?”
https://www.commondreams.org/opinion/who-to-blame-for-polycrisis
2 months ago
0
0
0
My plea for humility in politics: “The moral high ground is a dangerous place to stand, even when it’s warranted.”
dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos...
loading . . .
Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature | Dissident Voice
[A version of this essay was presented at the Taos Community of Love service on October 19, 2025.] I know this isn’t a conventional church service, but I would like to start with scripture: “The moral...
https://dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos-to-blame-political-action-personal-accountability-and-human-nature/
3 months ago
0
1
0
“The only human future I can imagine is ‘fewer and less’: fewer people consuming less energy and stuff. To deal with the temptations of dense energy, we need to agree to limits.” from my essay “Who’s to blame?”
dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos...
loading . . .
Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature | Dissident Voice
[A version of this essay was presented at the Taos Community of Love service on October 19, 2025.] I know this isn’t a conventional church service, but I would like to start with scripture: “The moral...
https://dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos-to-blame-political-action-personal-accountability-and-human-nature/
3 months ago
0
0
0
“The only human future I can imagine is ‘fewer and less’: fewer people consuming less energy and stuff. To deal with the temptations of dense energy, we need to agree to limits.” from my essay “Who’s to blame?”
dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos...
loading . . .
Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature | Dissident Voice
[A version of this essay was presented at the Taos Community of Love service on October 19, 2025.] I know this isn’t a conventional church service, but I would like to start with scripture: “The moral...
https://dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos-to-blame-political-action-personal-accountability-and-human-nature/
3 months ago
0
0
0
“Who’s to blame? Political action, personal accountability, and human nature” is online at Dissident Voice.
dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos...
The ideas come from my last two books and the forthcoming _This I Don’t Believe._
loading . . .
Who’s to Blame? Political Action, Personal Accountability, and Human Nature | Dissident Voice
[A version of this essay was presented at the Taos Community of Love service on October 19, 2025.] I know this isn’t a conventional church service, but I would like to start with scripture: “The moral...
https://dissidentvoice.org/2025/10/whos-to-blame-political-action-personal-accountability-and-human-nature/
3 months ago
0
0
0
Trump’s new “peace plan” reminded me of “Occupation Blues,” my 2003 review of Tanya Reinhart’s _Israel/Palestine How to End the War of 1948_: “for the ‘political generals,’ … the maximalist dream never died, and the plans for more land, and more war, went forward.”
robertwjensen.org/articles/occ...
loading . . .
Occupation Blues – ROBERT JENSEN
https://robertwjensen.org/articles/occupation-blues/
3 months ago
0
1
0
My latest attempt to summarize the trans debate in plain language: “Teaching the Transgender Debate: Journalism, Academic Freedom, and Responsible Reporting” in the LA Progressive.
www.laprogressive.com/lgbtq/teachi...
loading . . .
Teaching the Transgender Debate: Journalism, Academic Freedom, and Responsible Reporting
How educators can navigate state mandates, cultural conflict, and the responsibility to prepare future journalists for difficult conversations
https://www.laprogressive.com/lgbtq/teaching-the-transgender-debate-journalism-academic-freedom
4 months ago
0
0
0
“the worst teaching is simplistic teaching. Trying to understand a complex topic in philosophy can’t be done through platitudes. Grappling with the complex history of the United States takes more than political slogans.”
blueearbooks.substack.com/p/the-freedo...
loading . . .
The Freedom to Teach about Freedom
The worst teaching is simplistic teaching. Grappling with the complex history of the United States takes more than political slogans. And our most vexing cultural problems won’t be solved by dogma.
https://blueearbooks.substack.com/p/the-freedom-to-teach-about-freedom
4 months ago
0
2
1
I speculate on what the MAGA reaction to my teaching would be if I were still in the classroom in “The Freedom to Teach about Freedom” on Heterodoxy in the Stacks.
hxlibraries.substack.com/p/the-freedo...
loading . . .
The Freedom to Teach about Freedom
I had my share of political critics when I taught in Texas, back in what today seems like the quaint era of professor watchlists, but I never felt my job was in jeopardy.
https://hxlibraries.substack.com/p/the-freedom-to-teach-about-freedom
4 months ago
0
1
0
Darrell Jackson, one of the wonderful prison writers I work with, describes his college experience in prison. “Thinking Beyond the Bars” is at the Journal of Blacks in Higher Education.
jbhe.com/2025/09/thin...
loading . . .
Thinking Beyond the Bars | The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education
How higher education helped a prison inmate develop confidence and rediscover his humanity.
https://jbhe.com/2025/09/thinking-beyond-the-bars/
4 months ago
0
0
0
My book with Wes Jackson, An Inconvenient Apocalypse,
undpress.nd.edu/978026820366...
is 40% off from the publisher. Use the code at
undpress.nd.edu/apsa-virtual...
loading . . .
An Inconvenient Apocalypse
Confronting harsh ecological realities and the multiple cascading crises facing our world today, An Inconvenient Apocalypse argues that humanity’s future w...
https://undpress.nd.edu/9780268203665/an-inconvenient-apocalypse/
4 months ago
0
3
0
Ecologist Bill Rees provides a concise counter to the unhelpful hype that renewable energy can power modern societies. “What energy transition?”
reeswilliame.substack.com/p/what-energ...
loading . . .
What energy transition?
(will we soon be running on empty?)
https://reeswilliame.substack.com/p/what-energy-transition
6 months ago
0
1
0
We can support a robust conception of free speech without relying on jargon and platitudes. “There Is No Such Thing as Free-Speech Absolutism.”
3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily...
loading . . .
There Is No Such Thing as Free-Speech Absolutism - 3 Quarks Daily
by Robert Jensen
https://3quarksdaily.com/3quarksdaily/2024/07/there-is-no-such-thing-as-free-speech-absolutism.html
6 months ago
0
0
0
Given the recent flood of arguments for expanding the human population, I thought I would repost this book excerpt, “Population: The fear of limiting people and our things.”
www.populationbalance.org/publications...
loading . . .
Population: The fear of limiting people and our things — Population Balance
Here’s a question almost no one wants to talk about: What is the sustainable size of the human population, at what level of aggregate consumption? Why are so many people afraid to discuss something so...
https://www.populationbalance.org/publications/population-the-fear-of-limiting-people-and-our-things
6 months ago
0
0
0
If you are skeptical about transgender ideology but put off by the cruelty of Trump’s rhetoric, my chapter “Defining Sex/Gender: Beyond Trans Ideology” may be helpful. It’s part of my most recent book. Read it for free at
robertwjensen.org/books/its-de...
loading . . .
It’s Debatable: Talking Authentically about Tricky Topics – ROBERT JENSEN
https://robertwjensen.org/books/its-debatable/
6 months ago
1
0
0
Thanks to Donna Hughes, editor of the great journal “Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence,” for publishing my article "Why Are Men So Obsessed with Pornography? Andrea Dworkin Was Right."
digitalcommons.uri.edu/dignity/vol1...
loading . . .
Why Are Men So Obsessed with Pornography? Andrea Dworkin Was Right
By Robert Jensen, Published on 07/01/25
https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/dignity/vol10/iss3/6/
6 months ago
0
1
0
French translation of my latest article on pornography and Andrea Dworkin:
tradfem.wordpress.com/2025/07/19/p...
loading . . .
Pourquoi les hommes sont-ils autant obsédés par la pornographie ? Andrea Dworkin avait raison
ROBERT JENSEN: « Si un mouvement politique proposait une analyse perspicace d’un phénomène social destructeur et que, des décennies plus tard, cette analyse s’avérait plus ju…
https://tradfem.wordpress.com/2025/07/19/pourquoi-les-hommes-sont-ils-tellement-obsedes-par-la-pornographie-andrea-dworkin-avait-raison/
6 months ago
0
1
0
Yesterday I spoke to the National Organization for Men Against Sexism conference on “Why are men so obsessed with pornography? Andrea Dworkin was right.” The text is online at
juliebindel.substack.com/p/why-are-me...
loading . . .
Why are men so obsessed with pornography?
Andrea Dworkin was right
https://juliebindel.substack.com/p/why-are-men-so-obsessed-with-pornography
6 months ago
0
3
3
lonesomehighway.com/music-review...
Review of Eliza Gilkyson Dark Ages "… Gilkyson is in fine vocal form throughout ... that's hardly surprising; she has consistently hit that high mark with her recordings for over four decades now." Declan Culliton
loading . . .
New Album Reviews — Lonesome Highway
Simeon Hammond Dallas Seventeen self release The third EP from London native Simeon Hammond Dallas sees her looking back on her life, friendships and relationships to date as she enter...
https://www.lonesomehighway.com/music-reviews/2025/7/14/new-album-reviews
6 months ago
0
2
0
After reading a NYT story about the cultural obsession with being “hot,” I thought of this passage at the end of a talk I gave on pornography four years ago, about heat and light.
www.feministcurrent.com/2021/03/28/p...
loading . . .
Pornographic distortions: The struggle for intimacy in the 21st Century
Pornography impedes love, intimacy, respect, and connection. Yet many continue to defend it.
https://www.feministcurrent.com/2021/03/28/pornographic-distortions-the-struggle-for-intimacy-in-the-21st-century/
6 months ago
0
1
0
I just learned that
Academia.edu
is producing AI summaries of articles. Here’s one of my post-9/11 essays. AI Podcast of "September 11 and the failures of American intellectuals"
www.academia.edu/ai_podcast/9...
loading . . .
Academia.edu - Find Research Papers, Topics, Researchers
Academia.edu is the platform to share, find, and explore 50 Million research papers. Join us to accelerate your research needs & academic interests.
https://Academia.edu
6 months ago
0
0
0
Why I don’t endorse patriotism, a chapter from my 2004 book Citizens of the Empire: The Struggle to Claim Our Humanity, online at
robertwjensen.org/wp-content/u...
.
loading . . .
https://robertwjensen.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Citizens-of-the-Empire-Chapter-3-Patriotism-pdf.pdf
7 months ago
0
1
0
I had an engaging conversation about men and feminism with Dévashi Shakti for her “Beyond Patriarchal Sex” podcast. Thanks to her for the thoughtful questions.
devashi-shakti.mykajabi.com/podcast
loading . . .
Podcast
https://devashi-shakti.mykajabi.com/podcast
7 months ago
0
0
0
Most of my writing about race is decades old, and so I rarely get tagged in the DEI debate. But today I saw a Substack post that criticized an article of mine. “The Fears of White People”
robertwjensen.org/articles/why...
is an excerpt from my 2005 book, The Heart of Whiteness.
loading . . .
Why White People Are Afraid – ROBERT JENSEN
https://robertwjensen.org/articles/why-white-people-are-afraid/
7 months ago
0
0
0
This was my favorite interview about my book It’s Debatable: Talking Authentically about Tricky Topics.
currentpub.com/2024/07/19/i...
loading . . .
Interview with Robert Jensen: It’s Debatable
https://currentpub.com/2024/07/19/interview-with-robert-jensen-its-debatable/
7 months ago
0
0
0
With all the discussion about how to reach disaffected young men, I thought I would repost my talk on why “Radical feminism is a gift to men.” Video at
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi5T...
and text at
voicemalemagazine.org/radical-femi...
.
loading . . .
Radical feminism is a gift to men | Robert Jensen | TEDxRuhrUniversityBochum
YouTube video by TEDx Talks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mi5TG3E4rnE
8 months ago
0
0
0
My books are never best-sellers, but notes like this, from a young faculty member I met over email, are gratifying: “After the semester wrapped up I finally got to reading your book, The End of Patriarchy. It was illuminating, valuable, and challenging and I deeply appreciate the work."
8 months ago
0
0
0
My friend M.V. Ramana discuses “Pro-Nuclear Propaganda and Our Future” on my favorite podcast, “Overshoot.”
www.populationbalance.org/podcast/mv-r...
loading . . .
Pro-Nuclear Propaganda and Our Future — Population Balance
The nuclear industry and its boosters promise clean, abundant energy, but nuclear power delivers expensive electricity while posing catastrophic radiation risks and a constant threat of nuclear war. M...
https://www.populationbalance.org/podcast/mv-ramana
8 months ago
1
0
0
Tickets on sale for the world premiere of “Prairie Prophecy: The Wes Jackson Documentary,” April 26 in Salina, KS, at
www.stiefeltheatre.org/shows/prairi...
. Info on the film and the weekend’s activities at
www.prairieprophecy.com
.
loading . . .
World Premiere of
https://www.stiefeltheatre.org/shows/prairie-prophecy
9 months ago
0
3
1
“Conversation with Robert Jensen on his New Book, It’s Debatable” by Faramarz Farbod
dissidentvoice.org/2025/04/conv...
loading . . .
Conversation with Robert Jensen on his New Book, It’s Debatable | Dissident Voice
Host Faramarz Farbod interviews Robert Jensen, professor, journalist, activist, and author of many books, most recently It's Debatable: Talking Authentically about Tricky Topics. They talk about how t...
https://dissidentvoice.org/2025/04/conversation-with-robert-jensen-on-his-new-book-its-debatable/
10 months ago
0
1
0
My essay “Academic freedom under attack: From the government but also from within” is on Heterodoxy in the Stacks.
hxlibraries.substack.com/p/academic-f...
It’s adapted from my book It’s Debatable: Talking Authentically about Tricky Topics.
loading . . .
Academic freedom under attack: From the government but also from within
Universities in the United States are facing one of the most serious attempts to impose political control on higher education since the anticommunist loyalty tests of the 1950s.
https://hxlibraries.substack.com/p/academic-freedom-under-attack-from
10 months ago
0
1
0
I was the guest on the ABC (Australia) podcast “The Minefield.” Listen to “Is hope a flimsy emotion?” at
www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...
.
loading . . .
Ramadan: Is hope a flimsy emotion, or can it grow from devastation? - ABC listen
We arrive, at last, at the end of our Ramadan series — and the second of our pair of positive responses to radical disappointment with the world. For some, hope is untrustworthy, amounting to little m...
https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/theminefield/ramadan-hope-as-wishful-thinking-or-response-to-devastation/105026298
10 months ago
0
1
0
My new article in LA Progressive: “A Different ‘Abundance Agenda’: Avoiding Delusions and Diversions.” The foundational problem is overshoot: There are too many people consuming too much in the aggregate.
www.laprogressive.com/economic-equ...
loading . . .
A Different “Abundance Agenda”: Avoiding Delusions and Diversions
The foundational problem is overshoot: There are too many people consuming too much in the aggregate.
https://www.laprogressive.com/economic-equality/abundance-agenda
10 months ago
0
1
0
I suggest reading these two articles together, as an exercise in breaking out of partisan thinking. The Case for Retiring “Confederate Heroes Day”
merionwest.com/2023/01/19/t...
Drag Story Hour and Cultural Appropriation
juliebindel.substack.com/p/drag-story...
loading . . .
The Case for Retiring “Confederate Heroes Day”
Merion West is an online magazine for culture and politics.
https://merionwest.com/2023/01/19/the-case-for-retiring-confederate-heroes-day/
10 months ago
0
1
0
Load more
feeds!
log in