Professor Loses Job for Saying Otto Wambier Got 'What He Deserved'
A U.S. college professor is out of a job for saying that Otto Warmbier deserved to die. Katherine Dettwyler lost her position as an adjunct faculty member at the University of Delaware for posting on Facebook that the late North Korean prisoner "got exactly what he deserved."
Dettwyler sparked controversy when she posted a Facebook status (now deleted) where she described Warmbier, 22, as a "spoiled," "white, rich, clueless" American college student who "got exactly what he deserved." The victim ended up in a coma and died after being detained in North Korea.
Dettwyler, 62, wrote that Warmbier had the typical mindset of a young, white, rich, clueless male, similar to the students that she taught. These kids, she wrote, thought they didn't have to read and study the material to get a passing mark but then cried about their grades.
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The university came out with a statement on Sunday, saying the comments made by the anthropology professor did not reflect the values or position of the institution. It went on to condemn all messages that endorse hatred and convey insensitivity toward a tragic event.
The university's student government joined the fray by describing Dettwyler'scomments as "assumptive, offensive, highly inappropriate and lacks both professionalism and empathy." It added that it is nobody's duty to make assumptions on Warmbier's case without all the necessary facts.
Before the university announced her termination, Dettwyler tried to backpedal on her statement by stating on the comment box that not all of her students fall into the category she described. "I love my hard-working, sincere, non-arrogant college students," she wrote.
But she also reiterated her original premise about white college students like Warmbier "[who] think nothing of raping drunk girls at frat parties and snorting cocaine, cheating on exams and threatening professors with physical violence." The university said it will not rehire Dettwyler.
