I keep thinking this sad story about the credibly accused plagiarist Jason Arday is over, but it keeps getting worse. Now, the premier medical journal in the world posted a propaganda piece about the suffering of alleged Black victims in medicine, suggesting that is why Mr. Arday potentially killed himself.
The New England Journal of Medicine is ranked among the most influential medical journals in the world, just after The Lancet. It rejects 95 percent of papers submitted. Yet, they accepted a piece about Jason Arday that accuses people, white people, of trying to kill black people.
The article, “Jason Arday and the Perils of Being Black in Academia,” starts out:
When Black academics say this, I imagine folks outside of our community think we are being hyperbolic. We are not. I think my non-Black colleagues are starting to get a taste of this as they realize how diabolically opposed to our own well-being most of the movements of our federal health agencies seem to be these days. It’s appalling and scary and also — yes, welcome. This is how it feels to know that there are systemic pressures working against your success, your well-being, and in the case of Jason Arday — your life.
Jason Arday had the distinction of being the youngest Black professor in the University of Cambridge’s history. His publications specifically focused on race and racism in the British educational system, and he didn’t shy away from using his own life in his examples. After the deliberate targeting of his veracity as an academic by another former Cambridge professor, dismissed due to his racism and white supremacist views, Prof. Arday came under intense scrutiny with regard to his Ph.D. thesis and the stories in his memoir. Besides making the point that his Ph.D. advisor and the university cleared him of any deliberate plagiarism allegations, I want to be clear that I don’t care whether or not any of these allegations against Prof. Arday were true. None of them were worth his career. And certainly not his life.
No Logic Here
First of all, Mr. Arday’s problems had nothing to do with his being Black and everything to do with many examples of potential plagiarism by more than one professor. Secondly, it wasn’t worth his death, but that was his choice. In fact, he was protected way too much because he was Black.
The article goes on to claim that Black academics are held to a different standard. In general, I can’t say, but in Mr. Arday’s case, the standard was extremely low.
The author ends by saying they are really trying to kill us.
Victims Everywhere
The author appears to buy into the victimhood mentality. As Famous Amos would say, “You may not be responsible for getting knocked down. But you’re certainly responsible for getting back up.” People suffer bias for all sorts of reasons, but this was not the case for Mr. Arday; quite the opposite.
People keep covering for Mr. Arday. It’s mind-boggling. The author thinks he was cleared; many disagree and call it a cover-up.
This article should never have made it to print. All it does is spread misinformation and incite people in a premier medical journal.
The editorial standards of the @NEJM must be questioned for deciding to publish this article as it is presented below. Such terrible judgement. Jason Arday and the Perils of Being Black in Academia | NEJM Voices https://t.co/QiEqk9hFGy
— Jeffrey Flier (@jflier) August 22, 2026