Oxford says no to Nathan Cofnas

One late-30s academic addressing a small gathering in a college wouldn’t usually provoke acres of coverage. But Nathan Cofnas – controversialist, researcher and advocate of ‘scientific racism’ – is someone who courts the spotlight.

Nathan Cofnas first came to Oxford as an DPhil student in philosophy at Balliol College, submitting his doctoral thesis in 2020 on the evolutionary basis of morality. He moved to Cambridge but, after writing in a blog post that Black people were inherently more suited to entertainment than academia, Emmanuel College chose not to continue their association in 2024.

Until then, there was little to distinguish Cofnas from a parade of controversialists haunting sections of academe, right-wing media and the further reaches of the internet. This changed earlier this year, when Cofnas made a public accusation of plagiarism against Cambridge professor Jason Arday – who was Black, and who later died by suicide. Cofnas remains suspended from his post at Ghent University, since joking that he wants to become “head of the department of eugenics and race science at Harvard”.

Following Arday's suicide, a dozen academics at Oxford University signed an open letter defending Nathan Cofnas as a whistleblower. The open letter asserts that “the pursuit of truth depends on rigorous self-policing by academics”.

The Oxford student branch of Reform UK has invited Cofnas to speak next Tuesday about 'DEI' (the American term for equality, diversity, and inclusion) and its 'impact' on universities. The event will take place at Oriel College, where Reform have booked a meeting room. Oriel say:

“The event is a student booking by a registered university society. The College permits events booked by students who are committee members of registered societies except in exceptional circumstances. Permission does not imply endorsement.”

Academic resistance

Universities across Britain are treading carefully following the introduction of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023, introduced by twice-dismissed (and once “resigned”) Secretary of State Gavin Williamson after two ‘no-platforming’ events in Oxford. But a college’s corporate responsibility doesn’t bind individual members of Oriel, and 49 of the college's Senior Common Room (academics and senior staff) have signed an open letter opposing Cofnas' views:

“In response to the forthcoming talk by Nathan Cofnas at Oriel College on 17 November, organised by the Oxon Universities’ Reform Society, we wish to make clear where we stand.

“We recognise that the College’s legal obligations on freedom of speech require it to allow the event to go ahead, and we respect its position of not commenting on the views of speakers at meetings held in the college. This statement does not represent the position of the College. Speaking as individuals, we also believe it is important to make our own position clear.

“Freedom of speech is not freedom for ideas or opinions to go unchallenged by evidence, questioning and argument. Nathan Cofnas has made claims about race and intelligence that we consider racist, abhorrent and without scientific foundation. We believe that these claims are fundamentally at odds with the values of equality, dignity and respect that we believe should define our academic community.

“We wish to make clear that we do not support the views expressed by Nathan Cofnas. Freedom of speech includes the freedom to challenge what others say, and we believe it is essential to challenge ideas that perpetuate racial prejudice and undermine the dignity and belonging of members of our community.

“The suggestion that Black people owe their place in universities and public life to anything other than their abilities is wrong. It is not supported by the evidence, and it disregards and diminishes the achievements of Black scholars, students and professionals. It contradicts the principles of intellectual merit, equal opportunity and inclusion to which we are committed.

“It is evident that this event has caused great distress among students, staff and colleagues, and in particular among members of our Black community. It also undermines and distracts from the many positive actions the College has taken in recent years to support greater diversity, equity and inclusion, which have greatly enriched College life. We stand in solidarity with those affected and reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that Oriel is a place where everyone belongs and can thrive.

“We recognise that there are many reasons why others in the Senior Common Room may be unable to sign this statement.”

And in what is as close to a public rebuke as the ‘great and the good’ in Oxford ever issue, the heads of six Oxford colleges, including Oriel, will speak in defence of diversity on the evening before Reform students host Nathan Cofnas. The free public event on Monday 16 November is entitled ‘How diversity and pluralism enrich higher education’.

Oxford Reform

Reform's event organisation has not gone smoothly. After the online event listing generated signups from people who didn’t intend to take up their booked seat, an email sent to those who registered said that tickets would be allocated by ballot instead. It asked people who had registered with a university email address to opt in by replying to the email.

However, redacted screenshots seen by the Clarion show a data breach whereby all recipients of the email were visible in the ‘Cc’ field rather than ‘Bcc’ (blind carbon-copy). The Reform society says it is reporting itself to the Information Commissioner’s Office, and ask recipients to immediately delete, and not forward.

Articles by the President of Oxon Universities’ Reform Society, Vittorio Peter Cuneo-Flood, perhaps demonstrate why the society wished to invite Cofnas to speak. In autumn 2024, according to Stand Up to Racism, Cuneo-Flood published an article in the extreme traditionalist Catholic magazine The Recusant, enthusiastically endorsing the work of Denis Fahey, an Irish priest notorious for his antisemitic political theology.

The article, ‘Fr Fahey’s The Kingship of Christ and Organized Naturalism’, describes Fahey’s book as essential reading and praises its account of the modern world. In his introduction, Cuneo-Flood identifies “the Freemasons and the Jewish Nation” as organised forces advancing Satan’s plans.

Separately, in an article for Oriel's student newspaper The Poor Print, Cuneo-Flood explores eugenics including euthanasia as an extension of Darwinian evolution:

“So, to recap: humans are the product of evolution. Our mind is the product of evolution. We want to survive, we want life to be better (well, we certainly don’t want to die), so we should use both eugenics on animals, and on ourselves to achieve this – indeed, this idea grew with the rise of evolution.

“We must then dwell on the best methods of eugenics, and comment on their merits. Now, if the methods were openly coercive, then people would resist them – not a plan. Therefore, the best eugenic programme will be that which is non-coercive, or rather, the person should feel as though they are not coerced, for the aim is non-resistance; still better, is the programme which seems positively attractive, for then the results will be speedier.”

Cuneo-Flood is a fourth-year undergraduate at Oriel reading classics and the President of the Oxon Universities' Reform Society. He stood as Reform UK’s candidate in Carfax and Jericho in the May 2026 Oxford City Council elections, coming last.

The Arday legacy

Some may say that the very purpose of university, and particularly a university like Oxford, is to explore controversy, to bring it into the light, and perhaps, learn and move on. But actions have consequences. Jason Arday died in August following an intense period of hostile public scrutiny, which Cambridge’s chancellor, Lord Smith, described as a “racist feeding frenzy”. Arday’s family have spoken of the unbearable public cruelty he had endured. An extraordinary meeting of Oxford’s student Conference of Common Rooms is scheduled for Wednesday 11 November, with proposals including an independent review of the Reform event’s approval process.

Campaign group Stand Up to Racism is calling for the cancellation of Nathan Cofnas’s appearance and supporting a demonstration outside Oriel College on Tuesday 17 November, ahead of the talk. As we publish, it seems the event will go on. But still, with ever growing voice, will the opposition from town and gown alike.