Timothy Farage’s deleted tweet next to his portrait. (image: Twitter/University photo)
University professor Timothy Farage is under investigation after calling for a “cure for homosexuality”.
Farage, a computer science professor at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD), sparked outrage after he suggested ‘curing’ gay men in light of the monkeypox outbreak.
He made the outrageous suggestion in a tweet on Friday (15 July), asking: “Can we at least try to find a cure for homosexuality, especially among men?”
His tweet included a link to a Daily Mail article on a monkeypox outbreak in New York City.
After a follower said his tweet “obviously implies that you think [homosexuality is] wrong and needs to be ‘cured’”, Farage replied: “I don’t think homosexuality is wrong. I think it is a medical disorder.”
The tweets fuelled outrage among students who have long called Farage out for anti-LGBTQ+ sentiments.
The UTD Pride student group said: “Farage has a long, well-documented history of hostility on LGBTQ+ issues. Dozens of students have made online statements verifying that Farage’s beliefs create an uncomfortable environment in the classroom.
“He has been known to discuss controversial political positions and promote personal social media accounts during lectures, which goes against university guidelines for professor’s conduct.
“While this most recent post is a striking example of homophobia and misinformation, it only exemplifies a portion of the hostility experienced by LGBTQ+ students in his classroom.”
After students demanded Farage be reprimanded for the tweet, UTD published a statement on Saturday (16 July) addressing the situation.
“The university is aware of recent tweets by a faculty member that are understandably upsetting to our campus community,” the statement said.
“The faculty member’s views do not represent the Jonsson School or the university; these comments are contrary to the climate and culture of inclusion and respect that are the core of our institutional values.”
Statement from PRIDE @ UTD and our friends in the UTD Rainbow Coalition on the recent statements made by CS Professor Farage and the University of Texas at Dallas response. We call upon the university administration to take immediate action on this issue. pic.twitter.com/7EFFpGUNMY
— PRIDE @ UTDallas (@prideutdallas) July 17, 2022
After calls for immediate action, the university released a follow-up statement on Monday (18 July) clarifying that they were in the “process of reviewing and investigating” the complaints made against Farage.
They also said they would be providing protections for LGBTQ+ students taking his classes, saying they would open up “additional sections of the fall classes taught by the professor to include at least one other professor”.
The university’s UTD Gender Center has said that, while university officials conduct their investigation, they will be “focused on supporting our campus community, especially those impacted by this incident,” including an online diversity support session on Wednesday (20 July).
Amid the fallout, more of Farage’s offensive tweets have resurfaced, including one in which he said “no one would want to have sex” with a group threatening to go on a sex strike over the nullification of Roe v. Wade.
Farage has denied that he is homophobic, but local TV station WFAA that he believes doctors should look into testing fetuses for homosexuality.
Dallas County of Health director Dr Phillip Huang responded by saying “that’s… not possible”.
UTD is only universities in the south-west of the US that’s considered to be LGBTQ-friendly.
It’s why students such as Robert Aden Lonergan, who is non-binary, were saddened to see Farage’s drivel.
“I came to this university to escape homophobia in my town and now I’ve encountered something that puts me right back there,” Lonergan told the Texas Tribune on Wednesday (20 July). “I can’t do that again. I can’t go through that again.”