Jeff Landry attacks LSU law professor

Why the Louisiana governor's latest attack on free speech in higher education reveals something about his lack of empathy and decency

Screenshot of Jeff Landry’s Twitter page attacking LSU professor

Gov. Jeff Landry has attacked higher education again, this time because a professor at LSU’s Paul Hebert Law Center had the decency and empathy to support African American students after Donald Trump’s election.

Nicholas Bryner is a professor at LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center and serves as director of the school’s Climate Change Law and Policy Project. He holds an endowed professorship in energy law and teaches courses in environmental, natural resources, and administrative law.

On Wednesday, Nov. 6, the day after Trump won the 2024 presidential election, Bryner spoke to students in one of his classes about the election's implications and their vote.

This is a portion of what he reportedly said:

[S]ome you in this room voted for Harris, some voted for Trump, some maybe didn’t vote at all, or voted for somebody else. But if your vote — I don’t mean any individually, in particular — if you voted for Trump and your rationale for voting for Trump is that you don’t like him personally, but you like his policies. I’ll just say that it’s on you to prove that by the way you conduct yourself and by the way that you treat other people around you.

Because I will say that I hear a lot about how groups of people in the law school, particularly Black students, don’t feel comfortable in the law school, don’t feel welcome here. And so I want y’all to think a little bit about why that is. And I don’t know if anybody falls in that category, but if you voted for Trump on the idea that you don’t like him personally, but that you like his policies, I just want you to think about the message that that sends to other people, and how you can prove that by treating other people in a way that matches that sentence.

We have a transcript of this portion of Bryner’s lecture because someone shared a video clip of it with Landry’s office.

Screenshot of Jeff Landry’s Twitter page

Offended by Bryner’s statement, Landry posted the video clip on his Twitter account on Sunday, observing, “This professor has defied the 76 million Americans who voted for President @realDonaldTrump - to silence and belittle those in his class who voted for our next president. This is not the kind of behavior we want at @LSU and our universities.”

First, let’s stipulate that the video — if not a deepfake — was shared out of context. We don’t know what came before or after Bryner’s statement about Trump. Did a student make a pro-Trump statement in class? Did one of his students say something racist or intolerant on social media? We don’t know, and Landry does not explain.

We can also surmise that whoever obtained the video and shared it with Landry and his staff did so to embarrass and harass Bryner.

Landry and others hope to get Bryner reprimanded or disciplined for this statement. Given LSU President William Tate’s history of lukewarm support of faculty free speech and academic freedom, there’s a decent chance LSU will not fully support Bryner’s right to speak honestly with these students about racism.

As of this writing, neither LSU nor the law school have issued any statement supporting Bryner.

What we know is that Landry is quick to attack college professors at LSU who criticize him or object to his policies.

In December 2021, Landry asked LSU to punish me for criticizing his blatant, mendacious lies about COVID-19 vaccines.

We also know that Landry falsely portrays himself as a free-speech advocate. Landry again reveals himself as intolerant and hypocritical by asking LSU to punish me and attacking Bryner, suggesting that LSU should punish or fire him for his protected speech.

Beyond Landry’s dishonesty and LSU’s usual cowardice, here’s something I’m afraid will get lost in the controversy: What Bryner said was entirely appropriate and maybe even necessary. And while he directed his comments to the vocal Trump supporters at LSU’s law school, what he said applies to any outspoken Trump supporter.

If you’re going to cheer on a proud racist, brag about your vote for him, and celebrate his victory, you have a special obligation to those around you — especially your Black and Hispanic friends and neighbors — to prove that you will treat them fairly and humanely.

And despite whatever they might say about not being racist, the fact remains that Trump’s blatant racism was not a dealbreaker for his voters when they entered the voting booth.

Trump campaigned as a racist. Racism and misogyny were centerpieces of his campaign. Racism likely propelled his base to the polls and is behind his surprise victory on Nov. 5.

Why do Landry and others try so hard to deny this fact and pretend that Trump does not mean what he said when he expresses disdain for people of color?

Trump has been telling us for years he hates Black and Hispanic people. Landry and other supporters can't credibly deny its reality if Trump is proud of that hatred and sees it as the foundation of his political success.

And that’s what Bryner did in class.

He acknowledged the elephant in the room: racism.

Bryner did not articulate a course policy but offered sensible and decent life advice to his students. He was saying that if you don’t want people to think you’re a racist because you proudly voted for one, you’ve got some work to do. You need to prove it, not just by your words but also by your actions.

Does Landry disagree with that sentiment? If so, he should tell us why.

What Bryner did was not only within the bounds of protected free speech, but it was also a kind and decent thing to do. He prioritized the well-being of his students of color. He spoke with kindness and respect to all the students in his class.

I don’t know Prof. Nicholas Bryner, but he seems decent, thoughtful, and courageous – precisely the kind of person you’d want to teach students at LSU or anywhere.

And it’s just that decency, empathy, and tolerance that someone like Landry finds so confusing and offensive because they’re alien to his nature.

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