Cambridge Don's Family Cites 'Public Cruelty' Amid Vigil for Late Professor

The family of Jason Arday, a professor at the University of Cambridge who died last week, has spoken of the "public cruelty" the academic faced in the weeks leading up to his death. Arday, 41, was found deceased at a South London address on Friday. He had resigned from his position as a Cambridge professor of sociology of education on August 5, stating his resignation should not be "mistaken for an acceptance of the narratives that have surrounded me."

A vigil was held on Monday, drawing supporters who are demanding an inquiry into media coverage of Arday. More than 90,000 people have signed a Good Law Project petition calling for such an investigation.

Lord Chris Smith, chancellor of Cambridge University, criticized the "racist feeding frenzy" directed at Arday. In a statement, Smith emphasized the possibility of upholding academic integrity while simultaneously questioning the treatment of individuals. "I do believe it is possible to hold to two principles at the same time: to believe in the importance of academic integrity, and where criticisms of plagiarism arise, about any academic, whoever they are, ensure that they are rigorously investigated," he said. "And also to refuse to join in a racist feeding frenzy over a particular academic."

Earlier reports indicated that claims of plagiarism concerning Arday's thesis and some journal publications were being investigated by Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), which awarded Arday his PhD in 2015, and the relevant journals. LJMU concluded that Arday had not plagiarized work. However, Cambridge University announced last week that it would conduct an independent investigation into his appointment.

During the vigil, Lord Simon Woolley, principal of Homerton College at the University of Cambridge, recounted a conversation with Arday where the academic expressed feeling "hounded to death" by critics. Filmmaker and activist Misan Harriman, also speaking at the vigil, stated that "legacy media crossed every line in the treatment of Jason" and that Arday "should still be here today."